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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 120 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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. hand — in cards
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. ground — a position
  8. ground — crushed
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. tear — from crying
  12. content — happy
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. content — the amount
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stand — to bear
  19. ground — the earth
  20. hand — help
  21. stock — shares
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. fork — in a road
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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