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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. branch — a division
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. deal — to handle
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wound — an injury
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. pitch — completely
  12. wound — an injury
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. saw — the tool
  19. kid — child
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. kid — to tease

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