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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · prune · rash · club · cold · fan · calf · content

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. club — for dancing
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. prune — to trim
  11. content — the amount
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rash — a series
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. face — to confront
  16. content — happy
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. face — to point toward
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cold — not warm
  21. club — a group
  22. cold — an illness
  23. club — for golf
  24. rash — hasty

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