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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. vault — a safe
  6. field — for sport
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. saw — the tool
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. press — a publisher
  11. press — to push
  12. lie — to recline
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. face — to point toward
  17. field — farmland
  18. press — newspapers
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. saw — the tool
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. face — part of the head
  24. field — a subject

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