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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 120 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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. face — to confront
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. face — part of the head
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. scale — size or range
  11. face — to point toward
  12. foot — a measure
  13. rush — hurry
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. stand — to bear
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wound — an injury
  24. stand — for spectators

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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