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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.

Make a worksheet

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
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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: field · straw · content · bass · net · lean · fall · safe

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. field — for sport
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. field — farmland
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. content — the amount
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. bass — low music
  12. net — after costs
  13. bass — the fish
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. fall — to drop
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — to bend
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. lean — thin
  22. field — a subject
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — for catching

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