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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. suit — to fit
  4. rest — a break
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rest — what's left
  7. suit — clothes
  8. clip — for paper
  9. rest — what's left
  10. squash — to crush
  11. suit — in cards
  12. clip — to cut
  13. face — to point toward
  14. chair — a leader
  15. face — part of the head
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mug — a face
  19. pit — a hole
  20. clip — a video
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — the sport
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a cup

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