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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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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: track · bore · leaves · deal · cap · chest · face · kid

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. cap — a hat
  3. track — a song
  4. deal — to handle
  5. kid — to tease
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. kid — child
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. track — to keep track
  13. cap — of ice
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. chest — of your body
  17. face — part of the head
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. cap — a lid
  20. face — to confront
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bore — to tire
  23. track — a path
  24. face — to point toward

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