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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. chest — of your body
  4. craft — a skill
  5. chest — a box
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. rash — hasty
  9. chest — of your body
  10. face — to point toward
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pop — music
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. roll — a list
  16. bank — for money
  17. roll — a cake
  18. craft — boats
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pop — to visit
  21. rash — a series
  22. pop — soda
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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