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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. land — ground
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. can — to be able to
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. fall — the season
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. can — a tin
  17. cap — a lid
  18. land — to come down
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. can — a tin
  22. content — the amount
  23. land — a country
  24. cap — a hat

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