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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: foot · cold · present · face · bore · rock · bay · scale

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. present — there
  3. scale — size or range
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. present — the time now
  6. scale — in music
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. cold — an illness
  10. rock — music
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. foot — a measure
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bore — to drill
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. cold — not warm
  21. present — a gift
  22. bore — to tire
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. rock — a stone

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