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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 120 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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. ball — a great time
  3. net — in sport
  4. mate — a partner
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. face — to confront
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. net — for catching
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. mate — a friend
  12. suit — in cards
  13. face — part of the head
  14. suit — clothes
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. face — to point toward
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — to breed
  21. ball — a dance
  22. tube — a container
  23. net — after costs
  24. wind — to turn a key

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