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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: fine · degree · mate · march · club · bass · perch · rest

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. fine — high quality
  3. bass — low music
  4. rest — a break
  5. march — music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. march — the month
  8. club — a group
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — for dancing
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — a friend
  14. degree — from a university
  15. bass — the fish
  16. mate — to breed
  17. march — the month
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. degree — temperature
  21. perch — the fish
  22. fine — all right
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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