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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bowl · bass · squash · degree · pit · field · fine · lie

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. field — farmland
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. lie — to recline
  6. degree — temperature
  7. pit — a hole
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. fine — all right
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. bass — the fish
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bass — low music
  21. fine — high quality
  22. squash — to crush
  23. pit — in a race
  24. degree — from a university

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