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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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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: degree · rule · field · mate · wave · present

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. rule — a law
  3. mate — to breed
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. field — a subject
  6. rule — government
  7. present — the time now
  8. field — for sport
  9. present — there
  10. present — a gift
  11. mate — a partner
  12. degree — temperature
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. field — farmland
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. mate — a friend

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