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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. net — for catching
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. face — to confront
  6. net — in sport
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. content — happy
  10. pound — a weight
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. face — to point toward
  17. rush — hurry
  18. net — after costs
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. bat — the animal
  24. rush — a thrill

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