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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. face — to confront
  3. spring — the season
  4. mug — to rob
  5. track — a path
  6. file — a line of people
  7. spring — a coil
  8. track — a song
  9. perch — the fish
  10. face — part of the head
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — the season
  13. spring — of water
  14. mug — a face
  15. face — to point toward
  16. track — to keep track
  17. fall — to drop
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. sharp — clever
  20. file — a tool
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. mug — a cup
  23. file — a document
  24. fall — to drop

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