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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. can — a tin
  3. face — to point toward
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. can — to be able to
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stock — shares
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. can — a tin
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. shower — rain
  17. file — a document
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. file — a tool
  22. stock — goods
  23. file — a line of people
  24. face — to confront

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