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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. board — a committee
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. club — for dancing
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. club — a group
  9. degree — temperature
  10. march — the month
  11. board — to get on
  12. plane — a tool
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. march — the month
  16. club — for golf
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. date — the fruit
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. degree — an amount
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. degree — from a university
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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