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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: stick · mouse · face · bulb · fork · last · season · cold

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. season — in sport
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. last — finally
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. last — final
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. season — of the year
  11. fork — in a road
  12. face — part of the head
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. bulb — for light
  16. face — to point toward
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bulb — for light
  19. last — to go on
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. cold — not warm
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. fork — to eat with

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