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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. face — to confront
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. cue — a hint
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. track — a song
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. clip — for paper
  10. track — a path
  11. face — part of the head
  12. clip — to cut
  13. hand — help
  14. plane — a tool
  15. hand — in cards
  16. pop — to visit
  17. pop — music
  18. rush — hurry
  19. cue — a signal
  20. track — to keep track
  21. cue — for pool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. face — to point toward
  24. clip — a video

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