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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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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: drill · arm · capital · fine · bore · degree · mark · cold

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. fine — all right
  3. mark — a trace
  4. bore — to drill
  5. degree — temperature
  6. degree — an amount
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. capital — money
  9. drill — a practice
  10. fine — high quality
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bore — to tire
  17. degree — from a university
  18. mark — a grade
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. capital — a city
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cold — an illness

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