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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: toast · fall · chair · row · spring · face · foot · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — the animal
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. fall — the season
  6. chair — a leader
  7. face — to point toward
  8. row — to paddle
  9. spring — of water
  10. face — to confront
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. spring — a coil
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. row — a line
  18. face — part of the head
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. spring — the season
  21. toast — bread
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. foot — a measure

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