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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 116 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. degree — from a university
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. degree — an amount
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. face — part of the head
  13. fine — all right
  14. degree — temperature
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lean — thin
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. hand — in cards
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. face — to point toward
  22. hand — help
  23. fine — high quality
  24. lean — to bend

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