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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: tube · face · field · net · ball · cell · suit · mate

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. cell — a phone
  3. face — to point toward
  4. mate — a friend
  5. field — a subject
  6. ball — a great time
  7. net — in sport
  8. field — for sport
  9. face — to confront
  10. mate — a partner
  11. field — farmland
  12. net — for catching
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mate — to breed
  15. suit — in cards
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. net — after costs
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. suit — to fit
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. tube — the underground
  22. suit — clothes
  23. ball — a dance
  24. tube — a container

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