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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 116 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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. face — to confront
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cap — a lid
  16. face — to point toward
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cap — of ice
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. dip — to sink
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. row — a line
  24. row — a quarrel

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