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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — final
  3. hand — in cards
  4. shower — to wash
  5. lean — thin
  6. face — to confront
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. ground — a position
  9. charge — in control
  10. lean — to bend
  11. can — a tin
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. can — a tin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. can — to be able to
  17. ground — crushed
  18. charge — a price
  19. hand — help
  20. last — finally
  21. charge — electricity
  22. ground — the earth
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to point toward

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