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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. field — a subject
  4. land — ground
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. stock — goods
  8. face — to point toward
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. stock — shares
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. land — a country
  13. wind — moving air
  14. field — for sport
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. dip — to sink
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. field — farmland
  20. face — part of the head
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. land — to come down
  24. wind — moving air

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