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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. face — to confront
  3. march — the month
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cue — for pool
  6. march — the month
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — of a word
  10. object — an aim
  11. cue — a signal
  12. saw — the tool
  13. wound — an injury
  14. scale — size or range
  15. root — the cause
  16. object — a thing
  17. scale — in music
  18. march — music
  19. face — part of the head
  20. saw — the tool
  21. cue — a hint
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. object — to protest

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