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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: fall · wind · straw · content · mug · scale · face · land

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wind — moving air
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. content — happy
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mug — a face
  10. land — a country
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. fall — to drop
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — ground
  16. wind — moving air
  17. content — the amount
  18. face — to confront
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. face — to point toward
  21. mug — a cup
  22. fall — the season
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mug — to rob

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