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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. vault — a safe
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. face — part of the head
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. face — to confront
  12. degree — temperature
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. cold — an illness
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. degree — from a university
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rash — a series
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. bank — for money
  24. degree — an amount

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