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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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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: content · pitch · swing · bore · mine · rash · face · roll

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — to play on
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. face — to confront
  6. swing — music
  7. content — happy
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. roll — a cake
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. rash — a series
  14. bore — to drill
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. rash — hasty
  17. roll — a list
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitch — completely
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bore — to tire
  23. mine — for digging
  24. roll — on a roll

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