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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 116 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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. present — there
  3. face — part of the head
  4. face — to point toward
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. face — to confront
  7. game — wild animals
  8. file — a line of people
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. file — a document
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. present — the time now
  15. craft — a skill
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. stock — shares
  18. wax — to grow
  19. craft — boats
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. stock — goods
  22. game — a match
  23. present — a gift
  24. file — a tool

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