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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. content — the amount
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. face — to confront
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. face — to point toward
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. wake — a trail
  16. content — happy
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. face — part of the head
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. march — the month
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. ruler — for measuring

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