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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: face · saw · plane · content · foot · stock · game · cabinet

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. face — to confront
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. foot — a measure
  5. face — part of the head
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. content — happy
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. face — to point toward
  16. content — the amount
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. stock — goods
  20. stock — shares
  21. game — wild animals
  22. plane — a tool
  23. game — a match
  24. cabinet — ministers

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