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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 · swing · race · fine · chair · wind · saw · lie

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. face — to point toward
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. chair — a leader
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. face — part of the head
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. swing — music
  14. race — a contest
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. race — humankind
  18. fine — all right
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. swing — to play on
  22. wind — moving air
  23. face — to confront
  24. swing — in golf

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