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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  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 — part of the head
  2. tube — a container
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a match
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. rash — hasty
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bear — the animal
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. spring — of water
  12. face — to point toward
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bear — the animal
  15. rash — a series
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. spring — the season
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. vault — a safe
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. face — to confront
  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