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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: key · bore · field · track · stand · wave · degree · cold

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. field — farmland
  3. track — to keep track
  4. field — for sport
  5. track — a path
  6. key — the most important part
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — an amount
  9. key — for a lock
  10. cold — not warm
  11. key — in music
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bore — to drill
  14. field — a subject
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. track — a song
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. stand — to bear
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. degree — from a university
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. wave — of the sea

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