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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. bound — obliged
  3. tear — to rip
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bound — certain
  6. cap — of ice
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. content — happy
  11. snap — to click
  12. can — to be able to
  13. rash — a series
  14. bound — tied together
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. cap — a lid
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. cap — a hat
  20. can — a tin
  21. tear — from crying
  22. content — the amount
  23. tear — from crying
  24. rash — hasty

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