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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. tube — the underground
  5. wound — an injury
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. tube — a container
  8. court — for sport
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rule — government
  15. face — part of the head
  16. wound — an injury
  17. rule — a law
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. court — of law
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — help
  22. court — of a king
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. hand — in cards

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