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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. stock — shares
  3. chest — of your body
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — the arms race
  6. fork — in a road
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. mug — to rob
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. mug — a face
  13. rest — what's left
  14. chest — a box
  15. stock — goods
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — part of the head
  20. race — humankind
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. mug — a cup
  23. rest — a break
  24. rest — what's left

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