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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · fork · march · plane · craft · game · press · degree

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. craft — a skill
  3. degree — an amount
  4. press — a publisher
  5. fork — in a road
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. game — wild animals
  8. degree — from a university
  9. press — newspapers
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. march — the month
  12. degree — temperature
  13. craft — boats
  14. game — a match
  15. press — to push
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. march — the month
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. plane — a tool
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. march — music
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. plane — in geometry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com