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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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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. track — a song
  4. degree — temperature
  5. track — a path
  6. degree — from a university
  7. file — a tool
  8. key — the most important part
  9. face — to confront
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. face — to point toward
  14. field — a subject
  15. fork — in a road
  16. degree — an amount
  17. key — for a lock
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. file — a line of people
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. key — in music
  22. track — to keep track
  23. file — a document
  24. rush — hurry

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