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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. wind — moving air
  4. saw — the tool
  5. face — to confront
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cell — in biology
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cell — a phone
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. face — to point toward
  18. saw — the tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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