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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: degree · march · rock · toast · bowl · fork

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. march — the month
  5. fork — in a road
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. degree — from a university
  9. march — the month
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. degree — temperature
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. rock — music
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. march — music
  18. rock — a stone

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