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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. charge — electricity
  3. spring — of water
  4. sharp — clever
  5. net — for catching
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. scale — size or range
  10. face — part of the head
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. prune — to trim
  13. scale — in music
  14. net — after costs
  15. prune — to trim
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — a coil
  20. net — in sport
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. face — to confront
  23. charge — a price
  24. charge — in control

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