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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fan · content · kid · bound · face · dip

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. kid — child
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. face — to confront
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bound — certain
  8. kid — to tease
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. face — to point toward
  11. content — happy
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bound — obliged
  14. dip — to sink
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. bound — tied together
  17. content — the amount
  18. dip — a sauce

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