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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mate — to breed
  3. swing — in golf
  4. mate — a friend
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. current — of water
  7. face — to point toward
  8. fine — high quality
  9. fine — all right
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. mate — a partner
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. current — happening now
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. wake — a trail
  19. swing — music
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. face — part of the head
  23. current — electric
  24. swing — to play on

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