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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. march — the month
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. face — to point toward
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cell — in biology
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. stock — shares
  14. face — part of the head
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bass — the fish
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. march — the month
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cue — for pool
  21. march — music
  22. bass — low music
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. stock — goods

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