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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: bat · content · suit · field · nail · firm · fall · cold

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. field — farmland
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — the amount
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. fall — to drop
  7. suit — clothes
  8. content — happy
  9. field — a subject
  10. firm — steady
  11. cold — an illness
  12. firm — decided
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. suit — in cards
  15. field — for sport
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. fall — the season
  21. firm — a company
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. suit — to fit

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