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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 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. clip — for paper
  8. pop — soda
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. clip — to cut
  13. spell — letters
  14. face — to confront
  15. pop — music
  16. face — to point toward
  17. spell — magic
  18. content — happy
  19. clip — a video
  20. pop — to visit
  21. spell — a short time
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. content — the amount

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