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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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468
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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. mine — for digging
  4. fine — all right
  5. face — part of the head
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. game — a match
  9. kid — child
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. game — wild animals
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. face — to confront
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. roll — a cake
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. roll — a list
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. kid — to tease
  23. game — a kind of play
  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