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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: ball · degree · foot · rest · object · last · march · patient

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. object — an aim
  3. march — music
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. march — the month
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a great time
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. degree — an amount
  12. last — final
  13. march — the month
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. rest — what's left
  16. foot — a measure
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. object — to protest
  19. rest — what's left
  20. ball — a dance
  21. last — finally
  22. rest — a break
  23. object — a thing
  24. patient — a sick person

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