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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. band — a ring
  3. charge — in control
  4. spell — magic
  5. season — of the year
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. season — in sport
  8. band — a music group
  9. tube — a container
  10. face — to confront
  11. spell — a short time
  12. tube — the underground
  13. charge — a price
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. face — to point toward
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. spell — letters
  19. stand — to bear
  20. cold — an illness
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. charge — electricity
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. cold — not warm

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