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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 had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. cue — a hint
  3. clip — to cut
  4. tube — a container
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cue — a signal
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. clip — for paper
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. sharp — clever
  13. cue — for pool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. face — to confront
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. clip — a video
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bear — the animal
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. tube — the underground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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