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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 took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — in a race
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — part of the head
  9. file — a document
  10. land — ground
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. face — to point toward
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. mine — for digging
  15. stem — to come from
  16. land — to come down
  17. file — a line of people
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. file — a tool
  22. land — a country
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. mine — belonging to me

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