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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bulb — for light
  10. pit — in a race
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pit — a hole
  14. face — part of the head
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. face — to point toward
  24. straw — a straw man

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