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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 116 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. fine — high quality
  3. cap — of ice
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — a hole
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bass — low music
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — part of the head
  14. mine — for digging
  15. scale — in music
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. bass — the fish
  19. scale — size or range
  20. fine — all right
  21. cap — a lid
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pit — in a race
  24. bass — the instrument

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