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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. face — part of the head
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — to point toward
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. stock — goods
  9. bat — the animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stock — shares
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. kid — child
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. scale — in music
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — size or range

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