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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. face — part of the head
  2. rule — a law
  3. face — to confront
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. lean — thin
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pop — to visit
  9. lean — to bend
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pop — soda
  14. club — for golf
  15. stock — shares
  16. pop — music
  17. cell — in biology
  18. stock — goods
  19. club — for dancing
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cell — a phone
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. mine — an explosive
  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