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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — wild animals
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. face — to point toward
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a cup
  11. face — part of the head
  12. land — a country
  13. field — for sport
  14. land — ground
  15. mug — a face
  16. fork — in a road
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. game — a match
  19. land — to come down
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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