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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 120 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 water is too ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. face — to confront
  3. scale — in music
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. scale — size or range
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wake — a trail
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. root — of a word
  15. staff — employees
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. face — to point toward
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bear — the animal
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  24. cold — an illness

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