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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. cold — not warm
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. face — to point toward
  11. drill — the tool
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. drill — army training
  14. cold — an illness
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. game — a match
  18. face — part of the head
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. drill — a practice
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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