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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. hand — in cards
  3. content — happy
  4. land — to come down
  5. content — the amount
  6. saw — the tool
  7. hand — help
  8. saw — the tool
  9. foot — a measure
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. board — a committee
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. face — to point toward
  17. row — a line
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. row — to paddle
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. face — to confront
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. board — to get on
  24. row — a quarrel

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