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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 · degree · lash · face · kick · saw · foot · perch

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. press — to push
  7. degree — from a university
  8. face — to point toward
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. degree — an amount
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. perch — the fish
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. face — part of the head
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. press — a publisher
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. kick — in football
  22. face — to confront
  23. press — newspapers
  24. degree — temperature

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