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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 120 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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. spell — magic
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — to confront
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. pit — in a race
  8. current — happening now
  9. bat — the animal
  10. lie — to recline
  11. face — part of the head
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. current — electric
  14. prune — to trim
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — letters
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. pit — a hole
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. current — of water
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — not warm
  23. prune — to trim
  24. prune — the fruit

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