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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — wild animals
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cue — a signal
  5. game — a match
  6. face — part of the head
  7. last — to go on
  8. current — electric
  9. last — final
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cue — for pool
  12. current — happening now
  13. last — finally
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. current — of water
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cue — a hint
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. face — to point toward
  24. fork — in a road

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