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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.

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: ball · mine · nail · bulb · chest · lie · face · chair

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. mine — for digging
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bulb — for light
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. chair — a leader
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bulb — for light
  13. face — to confront
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a great time
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. face — to point toward
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. chest — a box
  21. lie — to recline
  22. face — part of the head
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. chair — to sit on

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