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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: leaves · stick · wind · content · face · staff · field · season

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. wind — moving air
  3. field — a subject
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. staff — employees
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. face — to confront
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wind — moving air
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. field — for sport
  12. face — part of the head
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. content — happy
  16. content — the amount
  17. field — farmland
  18. season — of the year
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. season — in sport
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. face — to point toward

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