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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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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: ground · sharp · saw · march · lash · ball · degree · face

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. face — part of the head
  6. march — music
  7. degree — temperature
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. ground — the earth
  11. march — the month
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. face — to point toward
  14. march — the month
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. ball — a great time
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. degree — an amount
  20. ground — a position
  21. sharp — clever
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ground — crushed
  24. degree — from a university

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