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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. face — to confront
  5. fine — high quality
  6. lie — to recline
  7. swing — music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. file — a line of people
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. kid — to tease
  15. fine — all right
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. kid — child
  19. file — a document
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — in golf
  23. file — a tool
  24. lie — an untruth

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