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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 124 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. plane — a tool
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. present — there
  6. shower — rain
  7. present — a gift
  8. lean — thin
  9. scale — in music
  10. bat — the animal
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. lean — to bend
  13. spring — the season
  14. scale — size or range
  15. spring — of water
  16. face — to point toward
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. face — part of the head
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. shower — to wash
  22. face — to confront
  23. present — the time now
  24. spring — a coil

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