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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. content — happy
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. bass — the fish
  6. content — the amount
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. bear — the animal
  9. board — a committee
  10. face — part of the head
  11. date — the fruit
  12. face — to point toward
  13. board — to get on
  14. bass — low music
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. face — to confront
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. shower — rain
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. shower — to wash

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