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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. rush — hurry
  6. game — wild animals
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. content — happy
  9. face — to point toward
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. face — part of the head
  16. game — a match
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. face — to confront
  19. pound — a weight
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. plane — a tool
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

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