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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 116 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 · content · wind · tear · press · lash · lie · ball

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wind — moving air
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. content — the amount
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. tear — to rip
  9. face — to confront
  10. press — to push
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. press — newspapers
  13. content — happy
  14. press — a publisher
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tear — from crying
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. face — to point toward
  19. tear — from crying
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lash — an eyelash

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