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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bass — low music
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. swing — music
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. lie — to recline
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. face — to point toward
  9. swing — to play on
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — a measure
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. face — part of the head
  15. snap — to click
  16. swing — in golf
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. kick — in football
  21. bass — the fish
  22. sharp — clever
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. sharp — exactly

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