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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: march · land · track · row · nail · toast · degree · ground

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. ground — a position
  3. row — a line
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. degree — temperature
  6. track — to keep track
  7. degree — from a university
  8. march — music
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. ground — the earth
  11. land — to come down
  12. march — the month
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. toast — bread
  16. track — a path
  17. ground — crushed
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. land — ground
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. degree — an amount
  22. track — a song
  23. march — the month
  24. land — a country

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