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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. roll — a list
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. face — to confront
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — for light
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. land — a country
  11. face — part of the head
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pitch — completely
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. mine — for digging
  18. roll — a cake
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. land — ground
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. face — to point toward
  24. land — to come down

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