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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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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: coach · pass · mark · degree · band · stand · hand · clip

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. hand — help
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. hand — in cards
  9. degree — temperature
  10. clip — a video
  11. degree — from a university
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. mark — a grade
  14. band — a music group
  15. stand — to bear
  16. clip — for paper
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. degree — an amount
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. band — a ring
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. mark — a trace

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