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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. mate — a partner
  3. tube — a container
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. content — happy
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. mate — a friend
  8. fork — in a road
  9. face — to point toward
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. tube — the underground
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. stock — shares
  16. content — the amount
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. stock — goods
  19. face — to confront
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. mate — to breed
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. face — part of the head

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