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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: field · degree · ball · season · march · bay · tear · stick

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. degree — an amount
  3. field — farmland
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. march — the month
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. tear — to rip
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. season — of the year
  14. field — a subject
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — the month
  19. season — in sport
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. field — for sport
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. ball — a dance

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