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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pop — to visit
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. face — to confront
  5. drill — the tool
  6. season — in sport
  7. season — of the year
  8. court — for sport
  9. pop — music
  10. drill — a practice
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. content — the amount
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. content — happy
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. court — of a king
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to point toward
  20. drill — army training
  21. court — of law
  22. saw — the tool
  23. pop — soda
  24. season — to add flavour

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