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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 116 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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. content — happy
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bore — to tire
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. content — the amount
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stem — to come from
  19. bear — the animal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. bore — gave birth

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