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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 124 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. foot — a measure
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. ground — a position
  5. can — to be able to
  6. band — a music group
  7. fall — to drop
  8. can — a tin
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. fall — to drop
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bore — to tire
  13. content — the amount
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. content — happy
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. ground — the earth
  19. can — a tin
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. band — a ring
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to drill
  24. fall — the season

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