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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. can — a tin
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. face — to point toward
  6. spell — magic
  7. field — farmland
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. shower — rain
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. spell — a short time
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. spell — letters
  16. game — a match
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. face — part of the head
  20. shower — to wash
  21. face — to confront
  22. game — wild animals
  23. can — a tin
  24. pitcher — a jug

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