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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. foot — a measure
  6. suit — in cards
  7. face — to point toward
  8. chair — a leader
  9. cold — not warm
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. sharp — clever
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. suit — to fit
  16. current — electric
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — an illness
  20. face — part of the head
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. suit — clothes
  23. current — of water
  24. current — happening now

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