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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. plane — a tool
  3. spell — magic
  4. row — to paddle
  5. chest — a box
  6. present — the time now
  7. row — a line
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. present — a gift
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the sport
  17. spell — letters
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. chest — of your body
  20. face — to confront
  21. face — to point toward
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. present — there
  24. chest — of your body

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