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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: key · mate · face · rule · perch · snap · pitcher · stick

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. key — the most important part
  3. face — part of the head
  4. rule — government
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. key — for a lock
  8. rule — a law
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. snap — to click
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. face — to confront
  13. mate — a friend
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. mate — to breed
  16. perch — the fish
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. key — in music
  24. mate — a partner

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