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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — to confront
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. spring — the season
  9. capital — money
  10. object — an aim
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. capital — a city
  17. object — to protest
  18. spring — of water
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. object — a thing
  23. face — part of the head
  24. fan — to cool the air

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