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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — to confront
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cap — of ice
  7. mate — a friend
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — to protest
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. court — of law
  13. face — part of the head
  14. spell — magic
  15. court — for sport
  16. cap — a lid
  17. spell — letters
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. court — of a king
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. mate — a partner
  24. object — a thing

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