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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. content — happy
  4. content — the amount
  5. land — to come down
  6. foot — a measure
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. wound — an injury
  11. lean — thin
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. land — a country
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. lean — to bend
  21. land — ground
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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