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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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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: file · land · rock · cap · face · mark · spring · last

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. rock — a stone
  3. rock — music
  4. file — a tool
  5. land — to come down
  6. cap — a hat
  7. last — final
  8. cap — a lid
  9. land — a country
  10. last — to go on
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. file — a document
  14. face — part of the head
  15. last — finally
  16. file — a line of people
  17. mark — a grade
  18. spring — a coil
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cap — of ice
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. face — to confront
  23. mark — a trace
  24. land — ground

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