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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. rest — what's left
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. game — wild animals
  5. face — part of the head
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. squash — to crush
  8. chest — a box
  9. suit — in cards
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rest — a break
  12. degree — an amount
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. suit — to fit
  15. squash — the sport
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. rest — what's left
  18. suit — clothes
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. game — a match
  21. face — to point toward
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. chest — of your body

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