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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: field · face · toast · cabinet · bound · jam · degree · dip

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — for sport
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. field — farmland
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to point toward
  8. bound — obliged
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. bound — certain
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. toast — bread
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. field — a subject
  21. face — to confront
  22. bound — tied together
  23. dip — to sink
  24. degree — an 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