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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: press · face · wave · lash · mate · fall · staff · stick

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — to point toward
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. fall — the season
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. press — to push
  10. mate — a friend
  11. staff — employees
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. staff — a stick
  17. mate — a partner
  18. fall — to drop
  19. face — part of the head
  20. staff — employees
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. mate — to breed

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