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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: scale · season · racket · face · fall · mine · saw · bat

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. face — to point toward
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. saw — the tool
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. season — in sport
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. saw — the tool
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. face — to confront
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. scale — size or range
  18. face — part of the head
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fall — to drop
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. fall — the season
  24. season — of the year

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