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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: chest · jam · field · deal · hand · lean · bear · bore

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. deal — to handle
  3. hand — in cards
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. lean — thin
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. bore — to tire
  11. chest — of your body
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. field — for sport
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. chest — a box
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — farmland
  19. lean — to bend
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. chest — of your body
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bore — to drill

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