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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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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: rock · stick · face · patient · wake · mate · content · plane

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mate — a friend
  3. plane — a tool
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. rock — a stone
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. mate — to breed
  13. face — to confront
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. wake — a trail
  18. content — the amount
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. mate — a partner
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rock — to move gently

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