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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: coach · degree · track · toast · ball · saw · mate · face

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. face — to confront
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. degree — from a university
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. track — to keep track
  7. degree — an amount
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. toast — bread
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to point toward
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. track — a song
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. saw — the tool
  19. track — a path
  20. mate — a friend
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. saw — the tool
  23. degree — temperature
  24. coach — a trainer

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