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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.

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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: key · mine · face · straw · cap · bulb · bay · hide

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. face — part of the head
  3. key — in music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. mine — for digging
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. key — for a lock
  11. cap — a lid
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. bulb — for light
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bulb — for light
  22. cap — a hat
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. straw — a straw man

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