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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. face — part of the head
  7. race — humankind
  8. degree — an amount
  9. race — a contest
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. chest — of your body
  13. degree — from a university
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. chest — a box
  16. race — the arms race
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. face — to point toward

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