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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. face — to confront
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. land — to come down
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. race — humankind
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. land — a country
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. present — there
  11. land — ground
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. race — a contest
  14. face — to point toward
  15. present — a gift
  16. hand — in cards
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. face — part of the head
  19. hand — help
  20. race — the arms race
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bat — the animal
  24. mine — for digging

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