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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · march · rock · swing · band · land · scale · wave

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. band — a music group
  3. rock — music
  4. degree — temperature
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. rock — a stone
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. land — a country
  11. degree — from a university
  12. land — ground
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. march — the month
  17. land — to come down
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — in music
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. band — a ring
  24. wave — of the sea

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