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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. content — happy
  5. rest — what's left
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rest — what's left
  8. spring — the season
  9. content — the amount
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. face — to point toward
  12. branch — a division
  13. spring — of water
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. face — part of the head
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bark — to shout
  24. face — to confront

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