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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: rush · squash · pass · face · spring · foot · chest · degree

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. face — part of the head
  3. degree — from a university
  4. spring — a coil
  5. degree — temperature
  6. chest — a box
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chest — of your body
  10. face — to confront
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. spring — the season
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. degree — an amount
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. foot — a measure
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. face — to point toward
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. spring — of water
  23. pass — a permit
  24. rush — hurry

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