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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. pitch — completely
  4. mate — to breed
  5. content — happy
  6. face — to point toward
  7. mate — a friend
  8. file — a tool
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. file — a line of people
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. capital — money
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. mate — a partner
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. face — to confront
  19. face — part of the head
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. file — a document
  22. content — the amount
  23. capital — a city
  24. pitch — a sports field

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