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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. face — part of the head
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. face — to point toward
  5. tear — from crying
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. swing — to play on
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cell — a phone
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. cell — in biology
  15. vault — a safe
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. tear — from crying
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. face — to confront
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. prune — to trim
  24. swing — music

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