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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. face — to confront
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. spring — the season
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. hand — help
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. spring — of water
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. face — to point toward
  20. hand — in cards
  21. face — part of the head
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. temple — a place of worship

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