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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. face — to confront
  4. spell — letters
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. spell — magic
  12. date — the fruit
  13. mine — for digging
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. sharp — clever
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — part of the head
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — exactly

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