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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — part of the head
  5. wake — a trail
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. face — to confront
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. kick — in football
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. land — to come down
  16. band — a ring
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. lean — to bend
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. band — a music group
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. lean — thin
  24. land — a country

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