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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 124 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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. can — a tin
  5. game — a match
  6. can — to be able to
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. row — to paddle
  9. roll — a cake
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. row — a line
  15. can — a tin
  16. craft — a skill
  17. date — the fruit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. face — part of the head
  20. wax — to grow
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. face — to confront
  24. craft — boats

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