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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · bulb · lie · kick · straw · spell · face · pass

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. bulb — for light
  3. face — to confront
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bulb — for light
  7. face — to point toward
  8. kick — in football
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lie — to recline
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. spell — letters
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. face — part of the head
  19. spell — magic
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pass — a permit
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. straw — dry grass

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