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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. sharp — clever
  3. content — happy
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. tear — from crying
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. tear — from crying
  11. face — to point toward
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pop — soda
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. tear — to rip
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. face — to confront
  21. content — the amount
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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