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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 116 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: ball · cabinet · mark · saw · face · chair · wave · kid

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. saw — the tool
  4. ball — a great time
  5. face — to confront
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. ball — a dance
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. face — to point toward
  13. kid — child
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. kid — to tease
  17. mark — a grade
  18. saw — the tool
  19. chair — a leader
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. face — part of the head
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. mark — a trace
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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