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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: pound · band · face · bear · content · roll · degree · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. face — part of the head
  3. roll — a list
  4. bear — the animal
  5. degree — an amount
  6. face — to confront
  7. pound — a weight
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. band — a ring
  11. degree — temperature
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. face — to point toward
  14. roll — a cake
  15. band — a music group
  16. plane — a tool
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bear — the animal
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. degree — from a university
  21. content — happy
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. content — the amount

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