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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: rock · face · tear · degree · bowl · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. object — an aim
  5. rock — music
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. object — a thing
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. degree — from a university
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — an amount
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rock — a stone
  17. face — to confront
  18. bowl — to roll

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