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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. face — to confront
  3. object — a thing
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mine — for digging
  10. object — an aim
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bore — to tire
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. object — to protest
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. face — part of the head
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bore — to drill
  20. mark — a grade
  21. face — to point toward
  22. content — the amount
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wax — to grow

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