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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 120 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. ground — a position
  4. cell — in biology
  5. face — to point toward
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. stock — shares
  8. mine — for digging
  9. track — a song
  10. row — to paddle
  11. stock — goods
  12. ground — crushed
  13. track — a path
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to confront
  17. row — a line
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. track — to keep track
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. ground — the earth
  24. cell — in a prison

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