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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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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: march · deal · rush · face · kick · cell · spring · chip

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. face — part of the head
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. face — to confront
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. deal — to handle
  10. chip — to eat
  11. march — the month
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — in football
  14. spring — the season
  15. chip — for betting
  16. march — music
  17. spring — a coil
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. spring — of water
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. march — the month
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. face — to point toward
  24. deal — an agreement

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