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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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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: pit · mate · press · march · face · degree

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. face — to confront
  8. mate — a friend
  9. degree — from a university
  10. press — to push
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — in a race
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — an amount
  15. press — newspapers
  16. press — a publisher
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — part of the head

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