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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. content — happy
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. mate — a friend
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bear — the animal
  7. face — part of the head
  8. ground — crushed
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. face — to confront
  12. bear — the animal
  13. content — the amount
  14. row — to paddle
  15. face — to point toward
  16. ground — a position
  17. rush — hurry
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. mate — a partner
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. mate — to breed
  24. racket — for tennis

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