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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 was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. face — to point toward
  3. race — a contest
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. rest — a break
  6. race — humankind
  7. field — farmland
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. face — part of the head
  11. field — a subject
  12. race — the arms race
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — a tin
  17. rest — what's left
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. face — to confront
  20. can — to be able to
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. wake — a trail
  23. field — for sport
  24. rest — what's left

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