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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. face — to confront
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. roll — a cake
  5. staff — a stick
  6. face — to point toward
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. clip — a video
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. staff — employees
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. staff — employees
  17. clip — to cut
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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