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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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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 · scale · cap · mark · race · march · drill · perch

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. row — to paddle
  3. race — a contest
  4. drill — a practice
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. drill — army training
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. march — the month
  9. cap — a lid
  10. scale — size or range
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a hat
  14. march — the month
  15. race — humankind
  16. drill — the tool
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. row — a line
  19. mark — a grade
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mark — a trace
  22. perch — the fish
  23. scale — in music
  24. race — the arms race

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