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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. kid — child
  5. content — the amount
  6. spell — letters
  7. content — happy
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. wind — moving air
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — to protest
  15. object — a thing
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. kid — to tease
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rush — hurry
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. spell — magic

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