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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. spring — the season
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. face — to point toward
  6. tear — to rip
  7. face — to confront
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. club — for dancing
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. face — part of the head
  15. club — for golf
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — completely
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. spring — of water
  24. club — a group

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