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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — for catching
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. rule — a law
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bear — the animal
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. bear — the animal
  14. swing — to play on
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. swing — music
  17. row — a line
  18. swing — in golf
  19. row — to paddle
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. face — part of the head
  22. snap — to click
  23. rule — government
  24. net — in sport

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