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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. field — farmland
  4. foot — a measure
  5. bore — to tire
  6. mug — a cup
  7. bore — to drill
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wind — moving air
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. mug — a face
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — happy
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. wind — moving air
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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