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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. plane — a tool
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. row — a line
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. face — to confront
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. face — part of the head
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. wound — an injury
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. court — for sport
  20. current — happening now
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. current — electric
  24. current — of water

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