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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. face — part of the head
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. face — to confront
  6. bass — the fish
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — completely
  10. last — final
  11. last — to go on
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bass — low music
  14. capital — a city
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. wind — moving air
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. last — finally
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. vault — a safe
  24. capital — money

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