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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: cold · bass · last · content · kick · rule · wave · face

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. cold — an illness
  3. face — to confront
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. content — happy
  9. rule — a law
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bass — low music
  12. kick — in football
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. last — finally
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. last — final
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — part of the head
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. last — to go on
  22. bass — the fish
  23. content — the amount
  24. cold — not warm

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