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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: ruler · field · content · land · stand · stick · hand · kid

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stand — to bear
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. content — the amount
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. kid — child
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. land — a country
  15. field — for sport
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. field — farmland
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. kid — to tease
  20. content — happy
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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