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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cold — an illness
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. can — a tin
  6. content — happy
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — crushed
  10. content — the amount
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. can — a tin
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mine — for digging
  20. can — to be able to
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. cold — not warm
  23. ground — a position
  24. mouse — the animal

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