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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bass — low music
  5. cap — a lid
  6. content — happy
  7. band — a ring
  8. club — for dancing
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bass — the fish
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. band — a music group
  13. face — to confront
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. tear — from crying
  19. content — the amount
  20. club — a group
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. club — for golf
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cap — of ice

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