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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chest — of your body
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. rash — a series
  5. prune — to trim
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. face — part of the head
  8. chest — of your body
  9. prune — to trim
  10. lie — to recline
  11. can — a tin
  12. plane — a tool
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. face — to confront
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chest — a box
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rash — hasty
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — to be able to
  22. face — to point toward
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. plane — an aircraft

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