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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. spell — a short time
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — for betting
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. face — part of the head
  8. spell — magic
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. game — a match
  11. wound — an injury
  12. kick — in football
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. spell — letters
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. game — wild animals
  21. can — a tin
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. face — to point toward
  24. chip — in a computer

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