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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. spring — the season
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — part of the head
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. stock — goods
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rest — what's left
  9. face — to point toward
  10. kid — to tease
  11. spring — a coil
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. game — a match
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. spring — of water
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. kid — child
  20. game — wild animals
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. plane — a tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

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