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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.

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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: swing · march · ball · chest · degree · root · mark · kick

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — temperature
  4. root — the cause
  5. chest — a box
  6. swing — to play on
  7. mark — a trace
  8. swing — music
  9. ball — a dance
  10. root — of a plant
  11. degree — from a university
  12. kick — in football
  13. march — the month
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. ball — a great time
  16. chest — of your body
  17. march — music
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. march — the month
  20. mark — a grade
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. chest — of your body
  24. root — of a word

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