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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: face · net · sharp · row · lean · content · capital · key

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. key — for a lock
  3. sharp — clever
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. face — to point toward
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. key — the most important part
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. capital — a city
  13. key — in music
  14. lean — to bend
  15. row — a line
  16. capital — money
  17. face — to confront
  18. net — for catching
  19. lean — thin
  20. face — part of the head
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — the amount
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. content — happy

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