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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — part of the head
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. roll — a cake
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. file — a tool
  11. face — to confront
  12. present — the time now
  13. club — for golf
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. club — for dancing
  17. file — a document
  18. club — a group
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. present — there
  21. prune — to trim
  22. present — a gift
  23. mine — for digging
  24. file — a line of people

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