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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: file · degree · toast · pitch · fine · field · mark · pound

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  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. toast — bread
  2. fine — high quality
  3. field — for sport
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. pitch — completely
  8. file — a document
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. mark — a trace
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. file — a tool
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. pound — a weight
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. mark — a grade
  22. file — a line of people
  23. fine — all right
  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