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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · cue · mate · face · scale · hide · spell · last

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. spell — magic
  3. last — final
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. face — to confront
  6. mate — a partner
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. mate — a friend
  10. face — part of the head
  11. spell — a short time
  12. last — to go on
  13. race — a contest
  14. cue — for pool
  15. face — to point toward
  16. spell — letters
  17. cue — a signal
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. scale — size or range
  20. last — finally
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — the arms race
  23. scale — in music
  24. cue — a hint

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