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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — the animal
  3. scale — in music
  4. capital — money
  5. field — farmland
  6. content — happy
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. content — the amount
  9. current — electric
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. capital — a city
  14. current — of water
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. field — a subject
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — to recline
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. scale — size or range
  24. current — happening now

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