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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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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. present — a gift
  3. row — a line
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. present — the time now
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. row — to paddle
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. face — part of the head
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. mark — a grade
  14. present — there
  15. face — to point toward
  16. mark — a trace
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. row — a quarrel

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