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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hand — help
  3. face — part of the head
  4. face — to confront
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stand — to bear
  7. content — the amount
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — happy
  12. can — a tin
  13. lean — thin
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. face — to point toward
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. can — to be able to
  21. perch — the fish
  22. can — a tin
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. perch — for a bird

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