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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · deal · face · chest · bat · foot

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. chest — a box
  3. bat — the animal
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. deal — to handle
  6. rule — government
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rule — a law
  9. chest — of your body
  10. foot — a measure
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — to confront

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