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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 120 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 · race · cell · bass · squash · bank · lean · pass

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bank — for money
  3. squash — to crush
  4. lean — thin
  5. cell — a phone
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bank — for money
  8. race — humankind
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. squash — the sport
  12. pass — a permit
  13. lean — to bend
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bass — low music
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. face — to confront
  19. bass — the fish
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bank — of a river
  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