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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 · mark · saw · pass · spell · season · ground · degree

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. season — in sport
  3. degree — an amount
  4. march — the month
  5. ground — the earth
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. march — music
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. saw — the tool
  13. mark — a grade
  14. ground — crushed
  15. pass — a permit
  16. march — the month
  17. spell — letters
  18. degree — from a university
  19. spell — magic
  20. degree — temperature
  21. ground — a position
  22. mark — a trace
  23. spell — a short time
  24. season — of the year

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