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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: row · cabinet · game · bass · roll · degree · vault · march

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. row — a line
  3. vault — a safe
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. roll — a cake
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. march — the month
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bass — low music
  12. march — music
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bass — the fish
  18. march — the month
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. roll — a list
  21. game — wild animals
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. game — a match

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