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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 116 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: content · cell · pound · wave · race · face · cap · bay

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. content — the amount
  5. face — to point toward
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. race — humankind
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. pound — a weight
  10. face — to confront
  11. content — happy
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. race — a contest
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. cap — of ice

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