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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. face — to confront
  3. net — for catching
  4. rash — hasty
  5. face — to point toward
  6. plane — a tool
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. net — in sport
  9. rash — a series
  10. bat — the animal
  11. shower — rain
  12. race — humankind
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. face — part of the head
  18. net — after costs
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. shower — to wash

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