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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. face — to confront
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. roll — a cake
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. tear — from crying
  10. face — part of the head
  11. mate — a partner
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. mate — to breed
  14. tear — from crying
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. roll — a list
  17. face — to point toward
  18. season — in sport
  19. kid — to tease
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. tear — to rip
  23. season — of the year
  24. mate — a friend

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