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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: face · lie · tube · degree · drill · pass · land · current

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. land — ground
  5. face — to point toward
  6. tube — the underground
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — a practice
  10. current — happening now
  11. face — part of the head
  12. land — a country
  13. degree — from a university
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. land — to come down
  16. face — to confront
  17. degree — an amount
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. pass — a permit
  20. current — of water
  21. current — electric
  22. lie — to recline
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. tube — a container

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