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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  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. can — a tin
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. can — to be able to
  5. swing — in golf
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. face — to point toward
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. game — wild animals
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. game — a match
  19. bear — the animal
  20. swing — music
  21. saw — the tool
  22. can — a tin
  23. branch — a division
  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