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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 valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. face — to confront
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. object — an aim
  9. cap — a hat
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cap — a lid
  12. branch — a division
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. stock — shares
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. object — to protest
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stock — goods
  21. face — part of the head
  22. wind — moving air
  23. face — to point toward
  24. branch — of a tree

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