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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. face — to point toward
  3. swing — in golf
  4. face — part of the head
  5. face — to confront
  6. wind — moving air
  7. swing — to play on
  8. wound — an injury
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. lean — to bend
  11. swing — music
  12. root — of a word
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. root — of a plant
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. root — the cause
  19. wind — moving air
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. wind — to turn a key

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