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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. squash — the sport
  3. cap — a lid
  4. spell — a short time
  5. row — a line
  6. mug — a cup
  7. face — to confront
  8. row — to paddle
  9. spell — magic
  10. bound — obliged
  11. face — part of the head
  12. spell — letters
  13. mug — to rob
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bound — tied together
  18. cap — a hat
  19. squash — to crush
  20. bound — certain
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. face — to point toward
  24. squash — the vegetable

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