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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. cell — in biology
  4. content — happy
  5. chest — of your body
  6. band — a music group
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. suit — in cards
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. chest — of your body
  12. content — the amount
  13. suit — to fit
  14. firm — a company
  15. chest — a box
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. cell — a phone
  19. firm — steady
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. lean — to bend
  22. firm — decided
  23. lean — thin
  24. suit — clothes

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