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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. firm — a company
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wake — a trail
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bat — the animal
  11. clip — to cut
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pound — a weight
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. face — to point toward
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. face — part of the head
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. firm — decided
  23. firm — steady
  24. clip — a video

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