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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. charge — electricity
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. march — music
  5. face — to point toward
  6. march — the month
  7. spell — magic
  8. stock — goods
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. march — the month
  12. content — the amount
  13. charge — a price
  14. mine — for digging
  15. stock — shares
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. spell — letters
  18. bat — the animal
  19. content — happy
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. face — to confront
  23. charge — in control
  24. face — part of the head

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