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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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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: cell · press · content · squash · face · toast · lash · temple

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. press — to push
  3. cell — in biology
  4. face — part of the head
  5. content — happy
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. face — to point toward
  8. squash — to crush
  9. press — newspapers
  10. cell — a phone
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. squash — the sport
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. content — the amount
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. toast — bread
  22. press — a publisher
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. temple — a place of worship

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