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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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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: snap · club · pound · scale · roll · field · degree · toast

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. pound — a weight
  3. degree — temperature
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. field — for sport
  8. degree — from a university
  9. field — farmland
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. toast — bread
  12. scale — size or range
  13. roll — a cake
  14. degree — an amount
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — a group
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. club — for dancing
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. roll — a list
  21. snap — to click
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. scale — in music

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