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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — to point toward
  4. mine — for digging
  5. firm — steady
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. stem — to come from
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. roll — a cake
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. swing — music
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mark — a trace
  16. roll — a list
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. face — part of the head
  19. swing — to play on
  20. mark — a grade
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. swing — in golf
  24. firm — a company

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