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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. pop — to visit
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cap — a lid
  11. last — finally
  12. pop — music
  13. cue — a hint
  14. face — to point toward
  15. cue — for pool
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pop — soda
  19. last — to go on
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. last — final
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cap — a hat

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