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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: current · fall · bound · field · object · cabinet · content · straw

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. field — farmland
  5. current — happening now
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. current — of water
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — obliged
  12. field — a subject
  13. bound — tied together
  14. content — happy
  15. object — to protest
  16. fall — the season
  17. object — an aim
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. current — electric
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. fall — to drop
  22. content — the amount
  23. object — a thing
  24. field — for sport

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