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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  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. kick — in football
  2. face — part of the head
  3. club — for dancing
  4. face — to point toward
  5. key — the most important part
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. key — in music
  10. club — for golf
  11. content — happy
  12. chest — of your body
  13. key — for a lock
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. club — a group
  18. content — the amount
  19. wound — an injury
  20. chest — a box
  21. wound — an injury
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. face — to confront

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