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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. land — to come down
  3. can — to be able to
  4. face — to confront
  5. can — a tin
  6. face — to point toward
  7. land — ground
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. face — part of the head
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — a permit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. land — a country
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bat — the animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wind — moving air
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. can — a tin

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