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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: track · ground · toast · fall · bound · net · degree · face

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. degree — from a university
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bound — tied together
  5. track — a song
  6. ground — crushed
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. bound — certain
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — an amount
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. toast — bread
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. track — a path
  19. track — to keep track
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bound — obliged
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. face — to confront
  24. fall — to drop

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