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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. game — a match
  4. sharp — clever
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — a position
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — to confront
  11. ground — crushed
  12. perch — the fish
  13. face — part of the head
  14. game — wild animals
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rock — a stone
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. track — a path
  24. game — a kind of play

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