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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. scale — size or range
  3. shower — to wash
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. field — a subject
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. season — of the year
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — a law
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. season — in sport
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. field — for sport
  22. field — farmland
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. shower — rain

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