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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mug — a face
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — employees
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. face — part of the head
  14. degree — from a university
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. mug — a cup
  18. mug — to rob
  19. degree — an amount
  20. snap — to click
  21. face — to point toward
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. degree — temperature
  24. staff — a stick

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