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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: lie · degree · cold · face · safe · wind · hide · coach

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. degree — an amount
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wind — moving air
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — from a university
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. face — to point toward
  12. cold — not warm
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. face — to confront
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. face — part of the head
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. wind — moving air

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