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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. degree — temperature
  3. face — part of the head
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. rock — music
  6. degree — an amount
  7. ball — a great time
  8. field — for sport
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. face — to point toward
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. field — a subject
  13. rock — a stone
  14. ball — a dance
  15. row — to paddle
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. row — a line
  19. face — to confront
  20. degree — from a university
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. field — farmland

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