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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. track — to keep track
  3. chip — for betting
  4. track — a song
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. ball — a great time
  7. chip — to eat
  8. cap — of ice
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bark — to shout
  11. cap — a hat
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. track — a path
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. mate — a partner
  17. chair — a leader
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mate — to breed
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. face — part of the head
  22. cap — a lid
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. ball — a dance

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