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

Word bank: bank · bowl · degree · pitch · face · tear

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. face — to point toward
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. face — part of the head
  11. tear — from crying
  12. degree — an amount
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pitch — completely
  16. face — to confront
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature

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