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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. net — after costs
  8. face — to point toward
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — in sport
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. land — a country
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. cell — in biology
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cell — a phone
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. land — ground
  20. pitch — completely
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. land — to come down
  24. face — to confront

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