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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — part of the head
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bulb — for light
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. swing — music
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. wound — an injury
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wound — an injury
  19. lie — to recline
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. field — a subject
  22. capital — a city
  23. face — to confront
  24. capital — money

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