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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. mine — for digging
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. face — to confront
  7. tube — the underground
  8. rule — a law
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. degree — from a university
  11. game — a match
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. rule — government
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. degree — temperature
  21. face — to point toward
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. game — wild animals
  24. degree — an amount

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