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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. wound — an injury
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. firm — a company
  8. content — the amount
  9. firm — steady
  10. field — a subject
  11. fall — to drop
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stock — shares
  15. field — for sport
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. board — a committee
  20. firm — decided
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. board — to get on
  23. stock — goods
  24. content — happy

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