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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 124 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cue — a signal
  6. pit — a hole
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. season — of the year
  10. cue — for pool
  11. spell — letters
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. kid — to tease
  14. spell — magic
  15. face — to confront
  16. kid — child
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. season — in sport
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. spell — a short time
  21. face — to point toward
  22. pit — in a race
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. hide — to keep secret

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