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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 116 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: march · board · wake · object · degree · wind · tube · kid

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wind — moving air
  5. march — the month
  6. object — a thing
  7. object — to protest
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. degree — from a university
  10. board — a committee
  11. tube — a container
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wind — moving air
  15. object — an aim
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wake — a trail
  18. kid — child
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. board — to get on
  24. march — the month

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