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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. fall — the season
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. land — a country
  7. face — to point toward
  8. scale — in music
  9. land — to come down
  10. craft — boats
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fall — to drop
  14. face — part of the head
  15. wind — moving air
  16. land — ground
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. present — a gift
  19. scale — size or range
  20. present — there
  21. fall — to drop
  22. present — the time now
  23. craft — a skill
  24. leaves — to go away

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