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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. content — the amount
  3. bound — certain
  4. squash — the sport
  5. press — to push
  6. content — happy
  7. face — to point toward
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bound — tied together
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bound — obliged
  15. press — a publisher
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bulb — for light
  18. face — part of the head
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. hand — help
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. press — newspapers
  23. hand — in cards
  24. squash — to crush

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