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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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Word bank
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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  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. rush — hurry
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. chair — a leader
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — to recline
  7. degree — an amount
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fine — all right
  11. face — part of the head
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bound — certain
  14. degree — temperature
  15. face — to confront
  16. bound — tied together
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bound — obliged
  21. fine — high quality
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. lie — an untruth
  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