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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: hide · face · race · spring · mug · cabinet · file · fall

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. race — the arms race
  3. face — to confront
  4. fall — the season
  5. mug — a face
  6. race — humankind
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. race — a contest
  9. mug — a cup
  10. file — a line of people
  11. mug — to rob
  12. face — part of the head
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. file — a document
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fall — to drop
  17. face — to point toward
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — a coil
  20. fall — to drop
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. file — a tool
  23. spring — the season
  24. cabinet — ministers

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