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

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  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. face — to point toward
  2. face — to confront
  3. degree — an amount
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. last — to go on
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. degree — temperature
  8. saw — the tool
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — in football
  11. foot — a measure
  12. bear — the animal
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. bear — the animal
  15. last — final
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. face — part of the head
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. last — finally
  23. kick — a thrill
  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