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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: degree · cap · court · firm · march · clip · stem · row

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. row — to paddle
  3. court — for sport
  4. degree — an amount
  5. firm — decided
  6. court — of a king
  7. march — music
  8. row — a line
  9. clip — for paper
  10. march — the month
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cap — of ice
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. court — of law
  16. clip — to cut
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. firm — steady
  19. clip — a video
  20. firm — a company
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — the month
  24. degree — from a university

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