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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. face — to confront
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — of ice
  6. face — part of the head
  7. drill — army training
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. face — to point toward
  10. drill — the tool
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bass — low music
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — not warm
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. tube — the underground
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — an illness
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. tube — a container
  24. drill — a practice

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