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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: fork · degree · pass · season · bass · date · fall · spring

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. date — the fruit
  3. fall — to drop
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. fall — the season
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pass — a permit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. season — in sport
  13. degree — from a university
  14. spring — of water
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bass — the fish
  17. season — of the year
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fork — in a road
  21. spring — the season
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. fall — to drop
  24. degree — temperature

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