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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — to confront
  3. prune — to trim
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — a coil
  6. key — the most important part
  7. prune — to trim
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. clip — to cut
  10. key — for a lock
  11. mate — a friend
  12. face — part of the head
  13. mate — a partner
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — shares
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. spring — the season
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. key — in music
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. mate — to breed

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