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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. tube — a container
  3. can — a tin
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. track — to keep track
  13. shower — to wash
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. track — a path
  16. face — to point toward
  17. shower — rain
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. track — a song
  20. hand — help
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. face — to confront
  23. hand — in cards
  24. tube — the underground

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