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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. clip — for paper
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. clip — a video
  9. face — part of the head
  10. shower — to wash
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. rock — music
  13. rock — a stone
  14. clip — to cut
  15. face — to point toward
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — rain
  18. wax — to grow
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. last — finally
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. last — to go on
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. last — final

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