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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. face — to confront
  3. wound — an injury
  4. face — to point toward
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. rash — hasty
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. row — a line
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. wound — an injury
  13. toast — bread
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. row — to paddle
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. content — happy
  18. face — part of the head
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. toast — the most admired

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