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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. face — to confront
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bat — the animal
  8. lie — to recline
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. face — part of the head
  12. degree — an amount
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. degree — temperature
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cap — a hat
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

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