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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. face — to confront
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. spell — a short time
  9. stock — goods
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. current — electric
  12. mine — for digging
  13. spell — magic
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. stock — shares
  16. mark — a trace
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mark — a grade
  19. current — happening now
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — part of the head
  22. current — of water
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. wind — moving 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