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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. face — part of the head
  3. face — to point toward
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. face — to confront
  6. can — a tin
  7. kid — child
  8. sharp — clever
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. season — of the year
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. can — to be able to
  16. kid — to tease
  17. season — in sport
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. ground — crushed
  20. can — a tin
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. ground — the earth
  24. sharp — exactly

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