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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — happy
  4. saw — the tool
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. field — for sport
  7. present — a gift
  8. mark — a grade
  9. present — there
  10. field — farmland
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. mark — a trace
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — a division
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. saw — the tool
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. stand — to bear
  22. snap — to click
  23. present — the time now
  24. field — a subject

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