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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. object — to protest
  3. snap — to click
  4. object — a thing
  5. face — part of the head
  6. drill — a practice
  7. court — of law
  8. season — in sport
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. court — for sport
  13. saw — the tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. saw — the tool
  17. object — an aim
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. court — of a king
  21. face — to point toward
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. season — of the year
  24. ruler — for measuring

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