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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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Word bank
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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: game · dip · sharp · face · spring · hide · mark · chest

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. spring — the season
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. face — to point toward
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. game — a match
  10. face — part of the head
  11. mark — a trace
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. chest — of your body
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. chest — a box
  18. sharp — clever
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. game — wild animals
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. spring — of water
  23. face — to confront
  24. chest — of your body

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