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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 120 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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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: bay · tube · degree · wind · fork · mate · face · ball

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. mate — to breed
  4. tube — a container
  5. degree — temperature
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. face — part of the head
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. mate — a partner
  14. degree — an amount
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. mate — a friend
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. tube — the underground
  22. face — to confront
  23. ball — a dance
  24. degree — from a university

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