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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. foot — a measure
  3. hand — in cards
  4. last — to go on
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. ground — the earth
  7. face — to confront
  8. scale — size or range
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. scale — in music
  11. face — to point toward
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. last — final
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. plane — a tool
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — a position
  22. last — finally
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. face — part of the head

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