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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. stock — goods
  4. roll — a list
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. march — the month
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. land — a country
  12. stock — shares
  13. mate — to breed
  14. roll — a cake
  15. land — to come down
  16. face — to confront
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. mate — a partner
  19. tube — a container
  20. mate — a friend
  21. tube — the underground
  22. face — to point toward
  23. land — ground
  24. leaves — lets stay

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