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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. content — the amount
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. bound — tied together
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. foot — a measure
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. content — happy
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. sharp — clever
  15. cold — an illness
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bound — obliged
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. cold — not warm
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. bound — certain
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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