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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. capital — money
  4. net — after costs
  5. chip — for betting
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. tear — from crying
  9. face — to point toward
  10. tear — to rip
  11. capital — a city
  12. net — in sport
  13. face — to confront
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. chip — to eat
  16. net — for catching
  17. squash — the sport
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. tear — from crying
  21. squash — to crush
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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