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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 · stand · stock · saw · degree · bass · wake · face

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. stand — to bear
  3. saw — the tool
  4. stock — shares
  5. bass — low music
  6. face — to confront
  7. degree — an amount
  8. face — to point toward
  9. march — the month
  10. saw — the tool
  11. face — part of the head
  12. march — music
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. degree — temperature
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. march — the month
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. bass — the fish
  22. stock — goods
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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