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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 116 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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. face — to point toward
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — size or range
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. face — to confront
  8. scale — in music
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. clip — to cut
  11. last — finally
  12. face — part of the head
  13. clip — for paper
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. clip — a video
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. stand — to bear

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