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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cap — a hat
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bore — to tire
  6. face — part of the head
  7. firm — decided
  8. fall — to drop
  9. firm — a company
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. cap — a lid
  16. fall — the season
  17. cap — of ice
  18. firm — steady
  19. bore — to drill
  20. face — to confront
  21. band — a ring
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — a tool
  24. wind — moving air

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