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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. sharp — clever
  3. present — there
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. last — finally
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a match
  9. spring — a coil
  10. present — the time now
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. last — final
  13. face — part of the head
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. face — to confront
  16. pop — music
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. last — to go on
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pop — to visit
  23. face — to point toward
  24. pop — soda

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