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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: lash · board · degree · straw · fine · march

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. board — a committee
  3. march — the month
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. board — to get on
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. degree — from a university
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. fine — all right
  12. march — the month
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. march — music
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. degree — temperature
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. degree — an amount

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