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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bear · wound · content · stand · lean · mine · land · chair

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. content — happy
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. stand — to bear
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. wound — an injury
  13. land — to come down
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. land — ground
  16. land — a country
  17. chair — a leader
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. bear — the animal
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. lean — thin
  23. content — the amount
  24. mine — belonging to me

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