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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. current — happening now
  3. scale — in music
  4. race — humankind
  5. cold — not warm
  6. current — of water
  7. current — electric
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. scale — size or range
  11. file — a tool
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. file — a line of people
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. file — a document
  16. face — to confront
  17. mine — for digging
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. face — part of the head
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cold — an illness
  24. temple — a place of worship

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