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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pop — music
  3. file — a line of people
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. pop — to visit
  9. file — a tool
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. face — part of the head
  13. file — a document
  14. pop — soda
  15. face — to confront
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — temperature
  18. face — to point toward

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