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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. face — to point toward
  3. clip — for paper
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. game — wild animals
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — for digging
  12. game — a match
  13. fork — in a road
  14. clip — a video
  15. face — part of the head
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. face — to confront
  19. clip — to cut
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. game — a kind of play

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