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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. face — to confront
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. hand — in cards
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fall — the season
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. face — part of the head
  10. mug — a cup
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. mug — a face
  13. face — to point toward
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mug — to rob
  16. sharp — clever
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. hand — help
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — temperature

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