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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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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. net — in sport
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. face — part of the head
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. game — wild animals
  12. net — for catching
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. game — a match
  17. stock — goods
  18. net — after costs
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stock — shares
  23. kid — child
  24. pit — in a race

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