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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. face — to confront
  3. plane — a tool
  4. bass — the fish
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bark — to shout
  7. kid — to tease
  8. wake — a trail
  9. kid — child
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. spell — letters
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. bass — low music
  17. face — part of the head
  18. spell — magic
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. face — to point toward
  23. spell — a short time
  24. plane — in geometry

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