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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — to confront
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. last — final
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mug — a cup
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. capital — money
  12. mug — a face
  13. last — finally
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. hand — help
  17. cell — in biology
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. pound — a weight
  20. hand — in cards
  21. last — to go on
  22. mug — to rob
  23. capital — a city
  24. bear — the animal

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