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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 124 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. field — for sport
  3. roll — a cake
  4. field — farmland
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. present — there
  8. can — a tin
  9. present — a gift
  10. roll — a list
  11. object — to protest
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. rule — a law
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — an aim
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. present — the time now
  21. rule — government
  22. face — part of the head
  23. field — a subject
  24. face — to point toward

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