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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: mouse · plane · cold · bore · face · current · net · ball

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bore — to drill
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — an illness
  5. current — electric
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. face — to point toward
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a dance
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. bore — to tire
  15. face — part of the head
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. net — after costs
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. plane — a tool
  22. ball — a great time
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. cold — not warm

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