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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. foot — a measure
  3. spell — letters
  4. capital — a city
  5. face — to confront
  6. mug — to rob
  7. capital — money
  8. tube — the underground
  9. mug — a face
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — magic
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — a container
  16. scale — in music
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. face — part of the head
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mine — for digging
  23. face — to point toward
  24. foot — the bottom

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