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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — wild animals
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in biology
  6. court — for sport
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. game — a match
  10. rock — a stone
  11. rock — music
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. face — to point toward
  16. face — part of the head
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. court — of law
  22. bulb — for light
  23. shower — rain
  24. court — of a king

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