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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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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 · rule · clip · root · pit · roll · bay · toast

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. rule — a law
  3. face — to point toward
  4. roll — a list
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. root — the cause
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. pit — in a race
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. face — to confront
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. root — of a word
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. clip — to cut
  19. roll — a cake
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rule — government
  22. face — part of the head
  23. clip — a video
  24. toast — bread

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