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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: mine · date · drill · degree · bay · lie · face · scale

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. drill — a practice
  3. drill — army training
  4. mine — for digging
  5. degree — from a university
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. face — part of the head
  8. face — to point toward
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. lie — to recline
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. scale — in music
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. scale — size or range
  18. degree — an amount
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. date — the fruit
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. drill — the tool
  24. date — on the calendar

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