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

Word bank: face · staff · hand · bay · track · mug · wake · last

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mug — a cup
  4. last — to go on
  5. hand — help
  6. track — a song
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. staff — a stick
  9. face — to confront
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. face — part of the head
  13. last — finally
  14. staff — employees
  15. mug — a face
  16. mug — to rob
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. staff — employees
  23. last — final
  24. hand — in cards

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