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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. face — to point toward
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. capital — a city
  7. face — to confront
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. face — part of the head
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cell — a phone
  14. field — farmland
  15. capital — money
  16. wax — to grow
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. cell — in biology
  19. deal — to handle
  20. fork — in a road
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. field — a subject
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. field — for sport

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