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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 120 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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. deal — to handle
  3. face — to point toward
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. capital — a city
  7. face — to confront
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — army training
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. chest — of your body
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. capital — money
  16. bulb — for light
  17. clip — to cut
  18. chest — a box
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. chest — of your body
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tear — from crying

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