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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  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. hand — in cards
  2. face — part of the head
  3. prune — to trim
  4. face — to point toward
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. hand — help
  7. prune — to trim
  8. row — a line
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bore — to drill
  11. fork — in a road
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. row — to paddle
  16. face — to confront
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. capital — money
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bore — gave birth
  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