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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: march · capital · lie · tear · plane · key · degree · fan

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. key — for a lock
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. march — music
  5. degree — an amount
  6. march — the month
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. march — the month
  9. key — the most important part
  10. capital — a city
  11. tear — to rip
  12. degree — from a university
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. capital — money
  17. degree — temperature
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lie — to recline
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. tear — from crying
  24. capital — a big letter

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