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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 116 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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. face — to point toward
  4. perch — the fish
  5. band — a ring
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. content — the amount
  8. ground — the earth
  9. can — to be able to
  10. court — of a king
  11. face — to confront
  12. rash — a series
  13. band — a music group
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. can — a tin
  16. ground — crushed
  17. court — of law
  18. ground — a position
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. court — for sport
  22. can — a tin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. face — part of the head

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