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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: face · bound · can · ground · land · lash · staff · fall

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — to point toward
  3. can — a tin
  4. fall — the season
  5. land — ground
  6. ground — a position
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — certain
  9. staff — employees
  10. can — to be able to
  11. ground — the earth
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ground — crushed
  14. face — part of the head
  15. staff — employees
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bound — tied together
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. can — a tin
  20. land — to come down
  21. staff — a stick
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. land — a country

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