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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. face — to confront
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. swing — in golf
  5. fall — to drop
  6. object — a thing
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. face — to point toward
  9. swing — music
  10. land — a country
  11. drill — the tool
  12. swing — to play on
  13. object — an aim
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. land — ground
  17. object — to protest
  18. drill — a practice
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. face — part of the head
  21. drill — army training
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. land — to come down

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