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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 120 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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. content — the amount
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. object — an aim
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bulb — for light
  9. content — happy
  10. mate — to breed
  11. face — to point toward
  12. object — to protest
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. mark — a grade
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. object — a thing
  22. face — to confront
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mark — a trace

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