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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. hand — help
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. race — a contest
  7. shower — to wash
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. hand — in cards
  10. face — to point toward
  11. wake — a trail
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. race — the arms race
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. face — to confront
  16. race — humankind
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. shower — rain
  22. cell — a phone
  23. sharp — clever
  24. leaves — lets stay

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