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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. bear — the animal
  3. content — the amount
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. clip — a video
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. pound — a weight
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. chip — for betting
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. bear — the animal
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — happy
  16. shower — rain
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — to eat
  24. fan — a supporter

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