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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. ground — crushed
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. last — to go on
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. ground — a position
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. rash — hasty
  12. kid — child
  13. rash — a series
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. last — final
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. last — finally
  22. fork — in a road
  23. ground — the earth
  24. rash — on the skin

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