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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  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. charge — a price
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. face — to point toward
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. dip — to sink
  8. face — part of the head
  9. charge — in control
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. charge — electricity
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. face — to confront
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. dip — to dunk
  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