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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. content — the amount
  3. land — ground
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. land — a country
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. content — happy
  9. bear — the animal
  10. file — a document
  11. snap — to click
  12. face — to point toward
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. file — a tool
  16. land — to come down
  17. file — a line of people
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bear — the animal
  20. face — to confront
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. face — part of the head
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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