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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · last · degree · stick · face · field · leaves · bass

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. field — farmland
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bass — the fish
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. mate — to breed
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. mate — a partner
  11. field — a subject
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. field — for sport
  14. last — final
  15. face — to point toward
  16. mate — a friend
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. degree — from a university
  21. last — finally
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. last — to go on
  24. bass — low music

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