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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. lean — to bend
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. drill — army training
  7. file — a document
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. face — part of the head
  11. face — to confront
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a tool
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — thin
  18. kid — child
  19. file — a line of people
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. drill — a practice
  23. coach — a trainer
  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