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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: key · lean · cold · cue · firm · face · band · rest

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. cue — for pool
  3. band — a music group
  4. rest — what's left
  5. key — the most important part
  6. firm — a company
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cue — a signal
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. face — part of the head
  11. firm — steady
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cue — a hint
  15. rest — a break
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. cold — an illness
  19. band — a ring
  20. face — to point toward
  21. key — in music
  22. firm — decided
  23. rest — what's left
  24. lean — to rest against

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