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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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. game — a match
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. band — a music group
  5. content — happy
  6. content — the amount
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. game — wild animals
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. face — part of the head
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. tube — the underground
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. band — a ring
  17. face — to point toward
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — a tool
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. tube — a container
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. face — to confront

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