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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cue — a signal
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cue — for pool
  10. face — to confront
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. spell — letters
  13. capital — money
  14. spell — magic
  15. cue — a hint
  16. face — to point toward
  17. capital — a city
  18. wound — an injury

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