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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. face — to confront
  3. bear — the animal
  4. firm — a company
  5. face — part of the head
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. capital — money
  9. bear — the animal
  10. root — of a word
  11. land — to come down
  12. kid — child
  13. root — the cause
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. land — a country
  16. pit — a hole
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. firm — decided
  19. pit — in a race
  20. face — to point toward
  21. land — ground
  22. capital — a city
  23. kid — to tease
  24. root — of a plant

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