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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: content · pop · chest · lean · stick · band · squash · cap

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. chest — of your body
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pop — music
  7. lean — to bend
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — the amount
  10. squash — the sport
  11. band — a music group
  12. pop — soda
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chest — a box
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. pop — to visit
  18. cap — of ice
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. content — happy
  22. cap — a hat
  23. band — a ring
  24. lean — thin

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