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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. degree — an amount
  3. face — part of the head
  4. firm — steady
  5. firm — a company
  6. root — of a word
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. key — in music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. face — to point toward
  13. shower — to wash
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. firm — decided
  16. degree — from a university
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. root — the cause
  19. key — the most important part
  20. shower — rain
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. root — of a plant
  23. degree — temperature
  24. fan — a supporter

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