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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. field — farmland
  5. content — happy
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cap — a lid
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cap — of ice
  13. lean — thin
  14. firm — steady
  15. field — for sport
  16. tube — the underground
  17. firm — decided
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. cap — a hat
  20. firm — a company
  21. tube — a container
  22. field — a subject
  23. content — the amount
  24. deal — to handle

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