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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 120 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. bear — the animal
  5. game — a match
  6. court — of law
  7. lean — to bend
  8. cold — not warm
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — for sport
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bear — the animal
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. lean — thin
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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