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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: foot · pop · degree · face · club · track · snap · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pop — music
  4. degree — from a university
  5. face — to confront
  6. snap — to click
  7. club — a group
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. degree — temperature
  10. club — for dancing
  11. track — a path
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. track — a song
  14. pop — to visit
  15. foot — a measure
  16. face — to point toward
  17. track — to keep track
  18. face — part of the head
  19. club — for golf
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. pop — soda
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wake — a trail

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