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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. dip — to sink
  3. band — a music group
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. content — happy
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bore — to tire
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — for sport
  11. face — part of the head
  12. charge — electricity
  13. face — to confront
  14. bore — to drill
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. charge — a price
  18. season — in sport
  19. band — a ring
  20. season — of the year
  21. charge — in control
  22. court — of law
  23. face — to point toward
  24. dip — to dunk

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