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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. face — to confront
  3. squash — to crush
  4. chip — to eat
  5. chip — for betting
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. race — a contest
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. spell — a short time
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — to wash
  13. spell — magic
  14. shower — rain
  15. row — a line
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pitch — completely
  18. row — to paddle
  19. spell — letters
  20. race — humankind
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. race — the arms race
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. pitch — a sports field

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