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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. race — humankind
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. court — for sport
  5. spell — a short time
  6. content — the amount
  7. face — to confront
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. court — of law
  10. face — to point toward
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — a contest
  13. spell — magic
  14. squash — to crush
  15. content — happy
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. swing — in golf
  18. swing — music
  19. spell — letters
  20. court — of a king
  21. swing — to play on
  22. squash — the sport
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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