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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. face — to confront
  3. chair — a leader
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mine — for digging
  8. band — a ring
  9. face — to point toward
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. tube — a container
  12. spell — letters
  13. scale — size or range
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spell — magic
  16. face — part of the head
  17. spell — a short time
  18. band — a music group
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. scale — in music
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. scale — for weighing

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