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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 was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — crushed
  4. march — the month
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — to point toward
  7. land — a country
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — a trail
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. plane — a tool
  15. ground — the earth
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. face — part of the head
  20. march — music
  21. march — the month
  22. track — a path
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. plane — in geometry

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