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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
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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: degree · field · pass · rest · club · fan · land · date

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. club — for dancing
  3. degree — temperature
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. land — ground
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rest — what's left
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. land — to come down
  12. club — for golf
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. land — a country
  15. field — farmland
  16. date — the fruit
  17. club — a group
  18. field — for sport
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pass — a permit
  24. field — a subject

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