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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wound · content · leaves · field · chest · lie · object · mine

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  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. lie — to recline
  2. content — the amount
  3. chest — of your body
  4. object — a thing
  5. field — a subject
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. field — farmland
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wound — an injury
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. wound — an injury
  17. mine — for digging
  18. field — for sport
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — to protest
  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