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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 120 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: cold · dip · face · fine · mate · trunk · scale · pitch

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — a friend
  5. face — part of the head
  6. cold — an illness
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pitch — completely
  10. face — to point toward
  11. scale — in music
  12. cold — not warm
  13. dip — to sink
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. face — to confront
  21. mate — to breed
  22. fine — all right
  23. scale — size or range
  24. fine — high quality

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