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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. clip — for paper
  6. face — to point toward
  7. clip — a video
  8. bound — certain
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. band — a music group
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — tied together
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. season — of the year
  16. scale — size or range
  17. band — a ring
  18. face — to confront
  19. clip — to cut
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. season — in sport
  22. scale — in music
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. leaves — lets stay

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