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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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468
Word bank
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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. face — part of the head
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. face — to confront
  8. capital — a city
  9. pitch — completely
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. capital — money
  21. face — to point toward
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. fan — to cool the air

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