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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. net — after costs
  4. craft — a skill
  5. tube — the underground
  6. field — farmland
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. face — to confront
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. net — for catching
  12. field — for sport
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. face — part of the head
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wind — moving air
  19. net — in sport
  20. craft — boats
  21. wind — moving air
  22. field — a subject
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. tube — a container

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