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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. board — to get on
  3. net — after costs
  4. content — happy
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. face — to confront
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bear — the animal
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — a committee
  14. content — the amount
  15. charge — a price
  16. bear — the animal
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. charge — electricity
  20. face — part of the head
  21. charge — in control
  22. hand — help
  23. face — to point toward
  24. content — videos and posts

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