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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bass — the fish
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. content — the amount
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. spring — of water
  10. prune — to trim
  11. face — to confront
  12. content — happy
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. spring — a coil
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. bass — low music
  24. spring — the season

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