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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: chip · face · spring · fine · rest · rock · cold · rule

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. rock — music
  3. face — to point toward
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. chip — to eat
  6. rest — a break
  7. face — to confront
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — the season
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rule — a law
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. rest — what's left
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rule — government
  17. chip — for betting
  18. fine — high quality
  19. cold — an illness
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rest — what's left
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. cold — not warm
  24. fine — all right

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