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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: plane · wound · mouse · drill · mine · season · face · last

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. last — finally
  6. season — in sport
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wound — an injury
  11. drill — the tool
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. drill — army training
  15. last — to go on
  16. mine — for digging
  17. wound — an injury
  18. last — final
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. season — of the year
  21. face — part of the head
  22. face — to confront
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. plane — a tool

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