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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. squash — the sport
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. drill — army training
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. sharp — clever
  12. drill — a practice
  13. club — for dancing
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. squash — to crush
  16. face — part of the head
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. club — for golf
  19. drill — the tool
  20. face — to point toward
  21. wax — to grow
  22. club — a group
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. hide — to keep secret

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