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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 120 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — a phone
  4. face — to point toward
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. mate — a partner
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pitch — completely
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. present — a gift
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. present — there
  16. fork — in a road
  17. present — the time now
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mate — to breed
  22. face — part of the head
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. mate — a friend

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