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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — part of the head
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. rest — a break
  5. mark — a grade
  6. file — a line of people
  7. mark — a trace
  8. rest — what's left
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. rest — what's left
  11. net — after costs
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. file — a document
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. net — for catching
  16. face — to point toward
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. file — a tool
  23. net — in sport
  24. ruler — for measuring

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