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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — hurry
  4. face — part of the head
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. chest — a box
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. chest — of your body
  13. vault — a safe
  14. stem — to come from
  15. face — to point toward
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. march — the month
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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