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

Word bank: face · chip · lash · bat · row · lie · rule · wind

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. face — to point toward
  6. wind — moving air
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. face — to confront
  14. chip — to eat
  15. chip — for betting
  16. rule — government
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. lie — to recline

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