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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: cap · bass · field · bowl · face · net · degree · date

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. 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. date — on the calendar
  2. field — farmland
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. degree — temperature
  6. field — for sport
  7. net — after costs
  8. cap — a hat
  9. bass — the fish
  10. degree — from a university
  11. cap — a lid
  12. net — in sport
  13. date — the fruit
  14. net — for catching
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. degree — an amount
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — part of the head
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bass — low music
  22. face — to confront
  23. field — a subject
  24. 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