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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. tube — the underground
  3. fine — all right
  4. file — a line of people
  5. charge — electricity
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. face — part of the head
  11. tube — a container
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. charge — a price
  16. fine — high quality
  17. pound — a weight
  18. charge — in control

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