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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. ground — a position
  5. mate — to breed
  6. last — to go on
  7. face — part of the head
  8. last — finally
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bank — for money
  11. mate — a friend
  12. face — to point toward
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bank — of a river
  15. last — final
  16. bank — for money
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bowl — a football final

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