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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. hand — in cards
  3. face — part of the head
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. face — to confront
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. march — music
  10. cell — a phone
  11. march — the month
  12. hand — help
  13. march — the month
  14. pop — soda
  15. season — of the year
  16. pop — music
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. stand — to bear
  19. face — to point toward
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. pop — to visit
  24. season — in sport

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