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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. face — part of the head
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. drill — the tool
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. content — the amount
  12. scale — size or range
  13. branch — a division
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. content — happy
  16. face — to confront
  17. stand — to bear
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. drill — army training
  20. face — to point toward
  21. drill — a practice
  22. scale — in music
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. branch — of a tree

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