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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. cap — a hat
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. field — farmland
  5. file — a tool
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. face — to point toward
  8. suit — to fit
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cap — of ice
  12. rash — hasty
  13. file — a line of people
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. file — a document
  16. suit — in cards
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. field — for sport
  19. suit — clothes
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. face — to confront
  22. cap — a lid
  23. field — a subject
  24. rash — a series

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