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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 120 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. wound — an injury
  3. content — the amount
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. cell — in biology
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. object — to protest
  15. object — a thing
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. content — happy
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. can — to be able to
  20. object — an aim
  21. cell — a phone
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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