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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. mug — a face
  3. march — the month
  4. face — to point toward
  5. march — the month
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. bound — obliged
  8. game — a match
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. shower — to wash
  12. game — wild animals
  13. bound — certain
  14. mug — to rob
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. bound — tied together
  19. shower — rain
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. march — music
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. tear — to rip
  24. face — to confront

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