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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. face — part of the head
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. pass — a permit
  6. face — to point toward
  7. clip — a video
  8. ground — a position
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. spell — magic
  12. ground — crushed
  13. face — to confront
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — a short time
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. net — after costs
  21. tube — the underground
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — to cut
  24. lash — an eyelash

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