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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. can — to be able to
  4. field — for sport
  5. staff — a stick
  6. fall — to drop
  7. can — a tin
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. content — the amount
  13. fall — the season
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. wound — an injury
  16. content — happy
  17. staff — employees
  18. field — farmland
  19. can — a tin
  20. staff — employees
  21. field — a subject
  22. wound — an injury
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cabinet — ministers

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