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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: face · foot · chest · fan · press · rest · bay · pound

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — to push
  9. press — a publisher
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. chest — of your body
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. rest — what's left
  16. foot — a measure
  17. pound — a weight
  18. chest — a box
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. face — to point toward

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