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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. current — happening now
  3. branch — a division
  4. prune — to trim
  5. court — of law
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. face — to point toward
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — for sport
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bore — to drill
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. chip — for betting
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. face — to confront
  18. prune — to trim
  19. chip — to eat
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. current — electric
  24. current — of water

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