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

Word bank: coach · bowl · pass · degree · tear · row

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. row — a line
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. tear — to rip
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. pass — a permit
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. tear — from crying

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