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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cue — a signal
  5. mate — a partner
  6. land — to come down
  7. band — a ring
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — to breed
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mate — a friend
  14. cue — a hint
  15. cue — for pool
  16. land — ground
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. land — a country
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. spring — the season
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to confront

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