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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: snap · wound · drill · saw · track · degree · face · rush

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. She's very handy with 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. track — to keep track
  2. wound — an injury
  3. face — to point toward
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. drill — the tool
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. saw — the tool
  9. face — part of the head
  10. wound — an injury
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. snap — to click
  15. degree — temperature
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. track — a path
  18. track — a song
  19. degree — from a university
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — a practice
  22. rush — hurry
  23. saw — the tool
  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