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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 slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. chest — of your body
  3. content — happy
  4. bound — certain
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mug — to rob
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. mug — a cup
  16. bound — obliged
  17. club — for dancing
  18. club — for golf
  19. mug — a face
  20. chest — a box
  21. bound — tied together
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. club — a group
  24. wave — of the sea

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