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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 120 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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — to point toward
  3. row — to paddle
  4. face — part of the head
  5. staff — employees
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. row — a line
  8. tube — the underground
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. staff — employees
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. spring — the season
  16. staff — a stick
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. tube — a container
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. spring — of water
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. spring — a coil

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