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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. scale — size or range
  4. face — to point toward
  5. face — to confront
  6. tube — the underground
  7. spell — a short time
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. rock — a stone
  10. spell — letters
  11. game — a match
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. game — wild animals
  15. spell — magic
  16. face — part of the head
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. tube — a container
  22. rock — music
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. game — a kind of play

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