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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. pop — soda
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. date — the fruit
  6. fork — in a road
  7. chair — a leader
  8. mug — a cup
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. face — part of the head
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pop — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. face — to point toward
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — to rob

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