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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. row — a line
  6. lean — thin
  7. content — happy
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. lean — to bend
  10. season — of the year
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. content — the amount
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. row — to paddle
  18. season — in sport
  19. stand — to bear
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. mine — for digging
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. season — to add flavour

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