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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: degree · field · date · saw · racket · bound · wave · land

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. field — for sport
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bound — certain
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. field — a subject
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. land — ground
  15. date — the fruit
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. bound — obliged
  19. field — farmland
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bound — tied together
  23. land — to come down
  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