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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. degree — temperature
  4. rest — what's left
  5. degree — from a university
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. rest — a break
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. saw — the tool
  18. face — to point toward
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. degree — an amount
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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