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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. degree — from a university
  4. mug — a cup
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. face — to confront
  7. chair — a leader
  8. race — a contest
  9. mug — a face
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — an amount
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. mug — to rob
  20. content — happy
  21. race — the arms race
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. race — humankind
  24. content — the 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