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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: dip · key · degree · ball · face · track · swing · ground

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. face — part of the head
  3. ground — the earth
  4. key — the most important part
  5. track — a song
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. track — a path
  8. degree — temperature
  9. swing — to play on
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. key — in music
  16. track — to keep track
  17. key — for a lock
  18. swing — in golf
  19. ground — a position
  20. face — to confront
  21. swing — music
  22. degree — from a university
  23. face — to point toward
  24. dip — to sink

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