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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: key · degree · face · net · plane · land · court · pitch

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. plane — a tool
  3. net — in sport
  4. face — part of the head
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. degree — an amount
  7. court — of a king
  8. land — to come down
  9. net — after costs
  10. court — of law
  11. key — in music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. net — for catching
  15. court — for sport
  16. degree — temperature
  17. key — for a lock
  18. land — a country
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. land — ground
  21. face — to confront
  22. degree — from a university
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. face — to point toward

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