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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. face — to confront
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. season — of the year
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pop — music
  7. last — finally
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. last — to go on
  10. rash — a series
  11. saw — the tool
  12. season — in sport
  13. face — part of the head
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bear — the animal
  16. last — final
  17. chair — a leader
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. face — to point toward
  20. pop — soda
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rash — hasty
  24. chair — to sit on

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