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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 116 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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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: content · bore · stick · swing · bear · fall · capital · fine

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bear — the animal
  4. fine — all right
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. fine — high quality
  8. capital — a city
  9. bore — to drill
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. swing — in golf
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bear — the animal
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. content — happy
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — the season
  23. capital — money
  24. swing — music

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