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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. file — a tool
  6. charge — in control
  7. hand — help
  8. charge — electricity
  9. face — to point toward
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mark — a trace
  13. bore — to drill
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. hand — in cards
  16. tube — the underground
  17. charge — a price
  18. face — part of the head
  19. bore — to tire
  20. mark — a grade
  21. tube — a container
  22. prune — to trim
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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