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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: row · last · toast · chip · degree · wind · face · band

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. last — to go on
  3. row — to paddle
  4. face — part of the head
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. degree — temperature
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. face — to confront
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wind — moving air
  13. toast — bread
  14. last — finally
  15. band — a music group
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. face — to point toward
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. row — a line
  20. chip — for betting
  21. wind — moving air
  22. band — a ring
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. last — final

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