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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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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. face — to point toward
  3. degree — from a university
  4. rest — a break
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. face — to confront
  7. field — a subject
  8. drill — a practice
  9. field — for sport
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. drill — army training
  12. degree — an amount
  13. field — farmland
  14. degree — temperature
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. content — the amount
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. content — happy
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rest — what's left

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