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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bat — the animal
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. cap — a lid
  9. face — to confront
  10. content — happy
  11. land — ground
  12. object — an aim
  13. lie — to recline
  14. object — to protest
  15. cap — of ice
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. land — a country
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. content — the amount
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. cap — a hat
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. object — a thing

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