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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pit — in a race
  9. march — music
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. face — part of the head
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. face — to confront
  14. club — for dancing
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. march — the month
  17. club — for golf
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. march — the month
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. wind — moving air
  22. season — of the year
  23. club — a group
  24. pitcher — a jug

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