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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 116 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: hand · file · bear · firm · march · face · ball · club

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. firm — decided
  3. club — a group
  4. face — to confront
  5. firm — steady
  6. march — the month
  7. file — a line of people
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. ball — a great time
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bear — the animal
  13. face — part of the head
  14. firm — a company
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. file — a document
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. bear — the animal
  20. club — for dancing
  21. hand — help
  22. ball — a dance
  23. club — for golf
  24. file — a tool

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