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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: rest · bat · pound · pitcher · suit · face · tear · degree

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. face — to point toward
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. suit — clothes
  9. degree — from a university
  10. face — part of the head
  11. rest — a break
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. face — to confront
  17. suit — to fit
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. degree — temperature
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bat — the animal
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pound — a weight
  24. suit — in cards

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