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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 120 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: bound · scale · plane · saw · degree · march · file · stock

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. march — the month
  3. degree — an amount
  4. file — a line of people
  5. scale — in music
  6. bound — tied together
  7. march — music
  8. stock — goods
  9. bound — obliged
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. degree — from a university
  12. scale — size or range
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bound — certain
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. file — a tool
  17. march — the month
  18. plane — a tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. saw — the tool
  23. file — a document
  24. stock — shares

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