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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: pit · stick · spell · bat · wake · face · cabinet · capital

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pit — a hole
  3. face — to point toward
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. face — to confront
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — letters
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. capital — money
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. spell — magic
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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