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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. content — happy
  3. bear — the animal
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. cap — a hat
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. lean — thin
  9. bear — the animal
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. cold — not warm
  17. board — to get on
  18. cap — of ice
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. craft — a skill
  22. lean — to bend
  23. wax — to grow
  24. board — a committee

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