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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. scale — size or range
  4. scale — in music
  5. face — part of the head
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. bear — the animal
  13. rash — a series
  14. bear — the animal
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. pitch — completely
  19. face — to confront
  20. kick — in football
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. face — to point toward

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