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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. net — after costs
  3. track — a song
  4. craft — a skill
  5. row — to paddle
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fall — to drop
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — part of the head
  11. track — to keep track
  12. net — in sport
  13. row — a line
  14. craft — boats
  15. fork — in a road
  16. net — for catching
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. fall — to drop
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. land — to come down
  21. fall — the season
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. track — a path

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