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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: perch · file · mouse · degree · field · cue · face · cabinet

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. degree — from a university
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. face — part of the head
  8. field — for sport
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. file — a tool
  12. field — farmland
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. field — a subject
  15. file — a line of people
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. file — a document
  21. cue — for pool
  22. face — to point toward
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. face — to confront

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