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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: rock · saw · face · hide · jam · rule · track · bat

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. rule — government
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rule — a law
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. track — a path
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — to point toward
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. track — a song
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. rock — music
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. face — part of the head
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. saw — the tool
  23. track — to keep track
  24. jam — in traffic

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