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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: band · straw · content · suit · bark · face · bowl · cell

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. face — to confront
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bark — to shout
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. suit — to fit
  10. content — happy
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. suit — clothes
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. content — the amount
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. band — a music group
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. band — a ring
  22. face — part of the head
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. face — to point toward

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