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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: plane · wind · lie · face · content · degree · prune · rule

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. lie — to recline
  3. content — the amount
  4. rule — government
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. face — to confront
  7. plane — a tool
  8. prune — to trim
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. rule — a law
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. face — part of the head
  15. wind — moving air
  16. content — happy
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. degree — temperature
  20. prune — to trim
  21. face — to point toward
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. plane — in geometry

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