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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.

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 · chest · band · racket · board · scale · spring · bank

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. degree — temperature
  4. scale — in music
  5. spring — of water
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bank — for money
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bank — of a river
  11. board — a committee
  12. board — to get on
  13. degree — from a university
  14. chest — of your body
  15. degree — an amount
  16. chest — of your body
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. chest — a box
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a ring
  24. bank — for money

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