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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: face · wave · race · march · band · content · bear · mate

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bear — the animal
  3. race — a contest
  4. mate — to breed
  5. march — the month
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. race — humankind
  8. bear — the animal
  9. band — a music group
  10. face — to point toward
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. face — to confront
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mate — a friend
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — happy
  19. race — the arms race
  20. face — part of the head
  21. march — music
  22. band — a ring
  23. march — the month
  24. wave — with your hand

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