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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: saw · stand · file · content · spring · hand · wound · bear

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. wound — an injury
  4. file — a document
  5. saw — the tool
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hand — in cards
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bear — the animal
  13. content — the amount
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. hand — help
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. content — happy
  23. file — a tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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