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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: dip · face · fall · straw · mug · spring · mate · roll

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. mate — a partner
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. roll — a list
  5. mug — to rob
  6. dip — to sink
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a friend
  9. fall — to drop
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mug — a cup
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. spring — the season
  14. fall — the season
  15. face — to confront
  16. spring — a coil
  17. mug — a face
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. fall — to drop
  23. face — part of the head
  24. spring — of water

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