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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 · rest · straw · land · season · arm · scale · bowl

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. face — part of the head
  6. rest — a break
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. scale — size or range
  9. rest — what's left
  10. scale — in music
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. land — a country
  14. face — to point toward
  15. season — of the year
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. face — to confront
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. land — ground
  21. rest — what's left
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. land — to come down
  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