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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. face — part of the head
  5. pit — a hole
  6. field — for sport
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pit — in a race
  10. swing — in golf
  11. club — a group
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. fork — in a road
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wind — moving air
  16. face — to confront
  17. field — farmland
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. content — happy
  21. swing — music
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. field — a subject
  24. face — to point toward

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