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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. pitch — completely
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. band — a ring
  6. face — to confront
  7. wax — to grow
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. land — ground
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bear — the animal
  14. face — part of the head
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. land — to come down
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. band — a music group
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — in football
  24. land — a country

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