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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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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: object · face · kid · patient · content · leaves · cell · mouse

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. face — part of the head
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. object — an aim
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. kid — to tease
  10. face — to confront
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. kid — child
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. object — to protest
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. object — a thing
  21. cell — in biology
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. cell — a phone

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