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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — the sport
  5. face — to confront
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rest — a break
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rest — what's left
  11. roll — a list
  12. season — of the year
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. rest — what's left
  16. season — in sport
  17. roll — a cake
  18. face — to point toward

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