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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: face · ruler · degree · lie · bat · rash · track · coach

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — part of the head
  3. track — a path
  4. track — a song
  5. degree — from a university
  6. face — to point toward
  7. lie — to recline
  8. degree — temperature
  9. track — to keep track
  10. bat — the animal
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. degree — an amount
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. rash — a series
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. rash — hasty

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