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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: ball · bound · branch · track · march · row · degree · foot

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. degree — from a university
  3. track — a path
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bound — obliged
  6. ball — a dance
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. march — music
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — a measure
  12. bound — tied together
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — an amount
  15. track — to keep track
  16. row — a line
  17. ball — a great time
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. bound — certain
  22. branch — a division
  23. march — the month
  24. degree — temperature

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