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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: face · foot · saw · pitch · mine · cue · bear · present

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — for pool
  5. present — there
  6. face — to point toward
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. present — a gift
  9. cue — a signal
  10. saw — the tool
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. face — part of the head
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. saw — the tool
  17. pitch — completely
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. foot — a measure
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. bear — the animal
  23. present — the time now
  24. foot — part of the body

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