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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — to confront
  5. perch — the fish
  6. game — a match
  7. land — ground
  8. land — to come down
  9. wind — moving air
  10. spell — magic
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — a country
  13. bear — the animal
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. last — finally
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — a short time
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. last — final
  20. face — part of the head
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. wind — moving air
  24. last — to go on

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