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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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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: stock · band · stand · land · vault · march · can · degree

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. march — music
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — to be able to
  7. band — a music group
  8. march — the month
  9. land — ground
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. land — to come down
  12. vault — a safe
  13. march — the month
  14. land — a country
  15. stock — shares
  16. stand — to bear
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stock — goods
  19. can — a tin
  20. degree — from a university
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. band — a ring
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. band — a rubber band

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