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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: tube · march · drill · chest · bass · roll · degree · pass

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. 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. degree — temperature
  3. chest — a box
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. roll — a cake
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — a practice
  8. march — the month
  9. bass — the fish
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. degree — an amount
  13. march — the month
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. bass — low music
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. tube — a container
  22. drill — army training
  23. tube — the underground
  24. 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