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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: straw · content · stem · track · key · fine · mine · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. content — happy
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. key — in music
  5. lean — thin
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. key — the most important part
  11. mine — for digging
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. track — a path
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. lean — to bend
  16. fine — high quality
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. content — the amount
  19. stem — to come from
  20. key — for a lock
  21. fine — all right
  22. track — to keep track
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. track — a song

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