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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 116 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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pitch — completely
  3. cue — a signal
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pop — soda
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. face — to point toward
  12. pop — music
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wind — moving air
  15. row — a line
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wind — moving air
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. cue — for pool
  22. face — to confront
  23. pop — to visit
  24. row — to paddle

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