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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. current — happening now
  3. chest — of your body
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ball — a dance
  6. chest — a box
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. cell — in biology
  9. ball — a great time
  10. chest — of your body
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. face — to point toward
  13. suit — to fit
  14. current — of water
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. cell — a phone
  18. face — part of the head
  19. suit — in cards
  20. tear — to rip
  21. suit — clothes
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. current — electric

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