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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. net — after costs
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wind — moving air
  5. face — to confront
  6. rest — what's left
  7. key — for a lock
  8. rest — what's left
  9. date — the fruit
  10. key — the most important part
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. face — to point toward
  17. key — in music
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. net — for catching
  21. wind — moving air
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. net — in sport

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