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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 120 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.

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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: tear · degree · stick · coach · scale · march · ruler · cold

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. march — the month
  5. tear — to rip
  6. march — music
  7. cold — not warm
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. tear — from crying
  10. degree — temperature
  11. cold — an illness
  12. degree — from a university
  13. march — the month
  14. tear — from crying
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. scale — in music
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. scale — size or range
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. degree — an amount
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. cold — the Cold War

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