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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. face — to confront
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bass — low music
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. kid — child
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. degree — temperature
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bass — the fish
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. rush — hurry
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. face — part of the head

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