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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 broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bound — tied together
  3. root — of a plant
  4. face — to confront
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. last — to go on
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bound — obliged
  12. last — finally
  13. race — humankind
  14. last — final
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. root — the cause
  17. wind — moving air
  18. root — of a word
  19. bound — certain
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — a contest
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. face — to point toward

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