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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  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. scale — size or range
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. object — a thing
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. object — to protest
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. content — the amount
  8. wound — an injury
  9. band — a music group
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wound — an injury
  12. game — a match
  13. face — to confront
  14. band — a ring
  15. face — part of the head
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music
  19. object — an aim
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. game — wild animals
  22. face — to point toward
  23. content — happy
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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