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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: present · spell · wound · march · capital · land · deal · degree

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. capital — a city
  3. march — music
  4. land — ground
  5. capital — money
  6. march — the month
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. spell — a short time
  10. deal — to handle
  11. present — there
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. degree — temperature
  14. wound — an injury
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. present — a gift
  17. wound — an injury
  18. land — a country
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — an amount
  21. spell — letters
  22. present — the time now
  23. march — the month
  24. land — to come down

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