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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. pass — a permit
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. file — a document
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. deal — to handle
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. file — a tool
  22. face — to confront
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. file — a line of people

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