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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: present · mouse · content · perch · face · chest · bass · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. present — a gift
  3. chest — of your body
  4. content — the amount
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. present — the time now
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — the fish
  9. chest — of your body
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bass — low music
  12. present — there
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. face — part of the head
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. face — to confront
  22. perch — the fish
  23. content — happy
  24. chest — a box

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