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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. staff — employees
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. staff — employees
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. pitch — completely
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pop — soda
  11. row — to paddle
  12. pop — music
  13. clip — for paper
  14. face — to point toward
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. face — to confront
  18. clip — a video
  19. pop — to visit
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. staff — a stick
  22. row — a line
  23. clip — to cut
  24. vault — a safe

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