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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. capital — money
  3. face — to confront
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a match
  8. face — to point toward
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. craft — a skill
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. clip — for paper
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. capital — a city
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bass — low music
  22. craft — boats
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. can — a tin

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