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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 120 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: tear · degree · stick · coach · scale · march

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. tear — from crying
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. tear — from crying
  7. march — the month
  8. tear — to rip
  9. march — music
  10. scale — size or range
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — an amount
  13. scale — in music
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. degree — from a university
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. march — the month

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