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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. rash — a series
  3. kick — in football
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. field — farmland
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. face — to point toward
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. hand — in cards
  20. field — for sport
  21. rash — hasty
  22. field — a subject
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. face — part of the head

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