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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 120 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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. court — for sport
  4. content — happy
  5. staff — employees
  6. lean — to bend
  7. staff — employees
  8. track — to keep track
  9. chest — of your body
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. court — of a king
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. chest — a box
  16. staff — a stick
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. track — a path
  20. track — a song
  21. chest — of your body
  22. court — of law
  23. lean — thin
  24. nail — for a hammer

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