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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. scale — size or range
  5. plane — a tool
  6. march — music
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. march — the month
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. game — a match
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. game — wild animals
  14. stock — goods
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stock — shares
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. face — part of the head
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. march — the month
  21. face — to point toward
  22. scale — in music
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. stock — a soup base

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