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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 · ruler · hand · tube · fall · arm · bound · land

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. face — to confront
  3. land — to come down
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bound — certain
  7. bound — obliged
  8. tube — the underground
  9. land — a country
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bound — tied together
  13. face — to point toward
  14. tube — a container
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. land — ground
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. hand — help
  24. face — part of the head

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