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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
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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: mate · chip · coach · nail · face · bark · saw · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. face — to confront
  4. mate — a partner
  5. chip — for betting
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. chip — to eat
  9. mate — to breed
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. face — part of the head
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. mate — a friend
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. saw — the tool
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bark — to shout
  21. saw — the tool
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. content — the amount

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