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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 · mine · kick · racket · degree · vault · prune · chip

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — in football
  4. degree — temperature
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. chip — for betting
  8. face — to confront
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. degree — from a university
  11. vault — a safe
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mine — for digging
  18. chip — to eat
  19. face — to point toward
  20. prune — to trim
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. racket — for tennis

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