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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bear — the animal
  6. craft — a skill
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. capital — a city
  12. face — part of the head
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. capital — money
  15. bear — the animal
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. degree — from a university
  18. cue — a signal
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. cue — a hint
  21. face — to point toward
  22. degree — an amount
  23. cue — for pool
  24. craft — boats

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