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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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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: lean · bay · rash · perch · scale · mug · hand · face

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. face — to point toward
  3. hand — help
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. rash — a series
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — thin
  11. mug — a face
  12. face — part of the head
  13. scale — size or range
  14. rash — hasty
  15. mug — a cup
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. face — to confront

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