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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. capital — money
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cold — an illness
  5. tube — a container
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — to confront
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. capital — a city
  15. present — a gift
  16. saw — the tool
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. face — part of the head
  20. present — the time now
  21. saw — the tool
  22. lie — to recline
  23. present — there
  24. cold — the Cold War

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