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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spell · swing · ball · tube · face · ground · wind · deal

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. deal — to handle
  3. swing — to play on
  4. face — to point toward
  5. swing — in golf
  6. ball — a great time
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. face — part of the head
  10. tube — the underground
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. wind — moving air
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — magic
  15. ground — the earth
  16. tube — a container
  17. spell — letters
  18. wind — moving air
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ground — a position
  22. ball — a dance
  23. swing — music
  24. tube — in a tire

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