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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — in sport
  5. face — to confront
  6. current — of water
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. current — electric
  12. season — of the year
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. current — happening now
  17. face — to point toward
  18. cell — in biology

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