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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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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: present · pound · track · dip · squash · ground · face · lie

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. squash — the sport
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. ground — the earth
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. face — to point toward
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. lie — to recline
  13. present — there
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. dip — to sink
  16. present — the time now
  17. ground — crushed
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. squash — to crush
  20. track — to keep track
  21. ground — a position
  22. face — part of the head
  23. present — a gift
  24. squash — the vegetable

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