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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: face · land · foot · tube · hand · race · shower · vault

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. race — a contest
  4. tube — a container
  5. race — the arms race
  6. vault — a safe
  7. foot — a measure
  8. face — part of the head
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. land — ground
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. tube — the underground
  13. land — to come down
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. shower — rain
  19. hand — in cards
  20. land — a country
  21. race — humankind
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. shower — to wash
  24. face — to confront

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