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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. drill — army training
  3. march — the month
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — the tool
  7. pass — a permit
  8. band — a music group
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. march — music
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. board — to get on
  17. board — a committee
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. band — a ring
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. march — the month
  24. board — a flat piece

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