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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. net — in sport
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. cell — a phone
  6. suit — clothes
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cell — in biology
  9. net — after costs
  10. suit — to fit
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. face — to point toward
  13. net — for catching
  14. face — part of the head
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. suit — in cards
  17. pound — a weight
  18. prune — to trim

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