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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 124 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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — part of the head
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. press — a publisher
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — not warm
  8. face — to confront
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. last — to go on
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. last — finally
  16. press — newspapers
  17. last — final
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. press — to push
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. craft — boats
  23. clip — for paper
  24. craft — a skill

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