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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. degree — temperature
  3. face — part of the head
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. face — to point toward
  6. degree — an amount
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. can — a tin
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. can — to be able to
  11. rush — hurry
  12. object — an aim
  13. stock — goods
  14. saw — the tool
  15. object — to protest
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. degree — from a university
  18. object — a thing
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. can — a tin
  21. stock — shares
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stock — a soup base

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