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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. face — to confront
  3. last — to go on
  4. content — the amount
  5. last — finally
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. content — happy
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. club — for dancing
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — to wash
  15. last — final
  16. dip — to sink
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. face — to point toward
  19. current — electric
  20. face — part of the head
  21. current — happening now
  22. current — of water
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. club — a group

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