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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 116 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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. cold — an illness
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. fall — to drop
  5. spring — of water
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. squash — the sport
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. face — to confront
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. club — a group
  13. face — part of the head
  14. club — for golf
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fall — to drop
  17. club — for dancing
  18. fine — all right
  19. cold — not warm
  20. fall — the season
  21. squash — to crush
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — the season

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