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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 116 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
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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: content · last · land · face · bay · rush · degree · club

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  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. land — a country
  2. rush — hurry
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. content — the amount
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. land — to come down
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. club — a group
  10. content — happy
  11. last — final
  12. degree — temperature
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. face — part of the head
  15. last — finally
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. face — to point toward
  18. degree — from a university
  19. club — for golf
  20. last — to go on
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. land — ground
  23. face — to confront
  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