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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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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: suit · cold · face · wake · lean · bat · rule · object

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wake — a trail
  4. object — to protest
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. object — a thing
  8. face — to point toward
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bat — the animal
  12. suit — to fit
  13. face — part of the head
  14. rule — government
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. suit — clothes
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. suit — in cards
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rule — a law
  24. object — an aim

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