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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. content — happy
  3. current — happening now
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. court — of a king
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. current — of water
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. chest — a box
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. face — to confront
  14. tube — a container
  15. face — part of the head
  16. content — the amount
  17. current — electric
  18. chest — of your body
  19. court — for sport
  20. rush — hurry
  21. date — the fruit
  22. court — of law
  23. tube — the underground
  24. rush — to hurry

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