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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: shower · bowl · swing · hide · march · degree

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. degree — an amount
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. march — the month
  8. degree — temperature
  9. swing — in golf
  10. march — the month
  11. shower — rain
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. degree — from a university

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