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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: season · wound · club · degree · face · rule · cue · field

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. rule — government
  3. wound — an injury
  4. degree — an amount
  5. club — for dancing
  6. rule — a law
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. cue — for pool
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to point toward
  11. wound — an injury
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for golf
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — of the year
  16. cue — a hint
  17. season — in sport
  18. degree — from a university
  19. cue — a signal
  20. field — farmland
  21. face — to confront
  22. field — a subject
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. field — for sport

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