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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. spring — a coil
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. face — to point toward
  5. clip — a video
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. clip — to cut
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — the season
  16. key — the most important part
  17. clip — for paper
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. key — in music
  20. foot — a measure
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. key — for a lock
  24. face — part of the head

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