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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. face — to confront
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. rest — what's left
  6. present — a gift
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. face — part of the head
  13. scale — size or range
  14. rest — what's left
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. face — to point toward
  18. season — in sport
  19. season — of the year
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — there
  22. scale — in music
  23. hand — help
  24. rest — a break

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