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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bound — obliged
  3. ground — a position
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. face — part of the head
  7. fine — high quality
  8. dip — to sink
  9. face — to point toward
  10. file — a tool
  11. saw — the tool
  12. ground — crushed
  13. file — a document
  14. ground — the earth
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bound — tied together
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. bound — certain
  20. roll — a list
  21. file — a line of people
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. face — to confront

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