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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. club — for golf
  3. degree — an amount
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. swing — in golf
  6. degree — temperature
  7. face — part of the head
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. club — a group
  10. club — for dancing
  11. rest — what's left
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. swing — music
  14. rest — a break
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. degree — from a university
  17. lean — thin
  18. date — the fruit
  19. rest — what's left
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. lean — to bend
  22. face — to point toward
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. swing — to play on

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