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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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. wave — a sudden rise
  4. face — to point toward
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. firm — a company
  7. firm — decided
  8. face — part of the head
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. snap — to click
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. file — a line of people
  14. firm — steady
  15. file — a document
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — completely
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. file — a tool
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. roll — a list
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. content — the amount
  24. roll — a cake

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