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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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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: stand · cabinet · content · stick · hand · file · perch · tear

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. tear — to rip
  5. file — a line of people
  6. perch — the fish
  7. file — a document
  8. tear — from crying
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. hand — in cards
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. tear — from crying
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. content — the amount
  20. hand — help
  21. file — a tool
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. stand — to bear
  24. cabinet — ministers

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