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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 · tube · last · content · degree · leaves · ball · board

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. march — the month
  3. degree — temperature
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. content — happy
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. tube — the underground
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. degree — an amount
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. board — a committee
  14. last — to go on
  15. board — to get on
  16. ball — a great time
  17. march — music
  18. ball — a dance
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. last — final
  21. degree — from a university
  22. march — the month
  23. tube — a container
  24. ball — a round shape

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