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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. rock — music
  3. fall — to drop
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. rock — a stone
  7. fall — to drop
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. tube — the underground
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. tube — a container
  14. face — part of the head
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. kid — child
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. kid — to tease
  19. fall — the season
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. face — to point toward
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. arm — part of the body

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