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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. drill — army training
  7. face — to confront
  8. wound — an injury
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. drill — the tool
  14. face — to point toward
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. drill — a practice
  23. saw — the tool
  24. row — to paddle

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