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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: chair · degree · march · date · stand · drill · patient · roll

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. drill — a practice
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. date — the fruit
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. march — the month
  8. degree — an amount
  9. roll — a cake
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. degree — from a university
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. drill — army training
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. stand — to bear
  24. drill — the tool

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