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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: content · bound · lean · sharp · present · tear · ruler · stick

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bound — certain
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bound — tied together
  6. present — there
  7. sharp — clever
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bound — obliged
  10. present — a gift
  11. present — the time now
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. tear — to rip
  15. content — the amount
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lean — thin
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. lean — to bend
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. sharp — exactly

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