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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: kick · hand · rash · face · coach · rest · band · bay

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. kick — in football
  4. rash — hasty
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. face — to point toward
  7. hand — help
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. face — to confront
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. rest — what's left
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. rash — a series
  15. hand — in cards
  16. rest — a break
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a ring
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. band — a music group

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