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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. field — farmland
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. field — for sport
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. face — to confront
  12. clip — a video
  13. mate — a friend
  14. rash — a series
  15. rush — hurry
  16. mate — to breed
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. rash — hasty
  22. field — a subject
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bowl — a football final

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