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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. face — to point toward
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chest — a box
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. chest — of your body
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. chest — of your body
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. chair — a leader
  15. face — part of the head
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. dip — to sink
  19. face — to confront
  20. shower — rain
  21. march — music
  22. shower — to wash
  23. board — to get on
  24. board — a committee

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