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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: degree · content · bear · face · lean · chip · cabinet · bat

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. degree — an amount
  9. chip — for betting
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — happy
  12. degree — temperature
  13. lean — to bend
  14. content — the amount
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bat — the animal
  18. face — to confront
  19. face — to point toward
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bear — the animal
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. face — part of the head
  24. bear — to put up with

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