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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.

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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: squash · degree · object · band · fan · pound · pop · face

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  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. fan — to cool the air
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pop — soda
  4. band — a ring
  5. degree — temperature
  6. face — to confront
  7. pound — a weight
  8. object — to protest
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pop — to visit
  14. face — part of the head
  15. band — a music group
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. degree — from a university
  21. object — a thing
  22. pop — music
  23. object — an aim
  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