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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. fork — in a road
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. wind — moving air
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitch — completely
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. field — for sport
  12. rash — hasty
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. rash — a series
  16. wind — moving air
  17. face — to confront
  18. field — a subject
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. field — farmland
  23. kid — child
  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