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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. face — to confront
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. face — to point toward
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. face — part of the head
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. degree — temperature
  13. wound — an injury
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wind — moving air
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. mine — for digging
  19. snap — to click
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. degree — from a university
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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