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

Word bank: bore · fork · face · hide · kick · racket · bat · content

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bore — to tire
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. content — happy
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bat — the animal
  9. face — to point toward
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. face — to confront
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bore — to drill
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. face — part of the head
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. fork — in a road
  23. kick — in football
  24. hide — to keep secret

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