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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. content — the amount
  4. face — to point toward
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. face — to confront
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. pitch — completely
  12. content — happy
  13. face — part of the head
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mouse — the animal

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