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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: cold · march · current · roll · face · degree · vault · capital

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. march — the month
  4. current — happening now
  5. capital — money
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. roll — a list
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. capital — a city
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. degree — an amount
  15. march — the month
  16. degree — from a university
  17. current — of water
  18. current — electric
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. march — music
  21. face — to point toward
  22. vault — a safe
  23. degree — temperature
  24. roll — a cake

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