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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — to confront
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. tube — a container
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. plane — a tool
  9. rush — hurry
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. band — a music group
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. tube — the underground
  17. content — the amount
  18. fork — in a road
  19. wind — moving air
  20. content — happy
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. face — part of the head

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