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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.

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: mouse · content · bear · fall · file · sharp · straw · scale

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. fall — the season
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bear — the animal
  9. scale — size or range
  10. fall — to drop
  11. file — a document
  12. bear — the animal
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fall — to drop
  15. scale — in music
  16. content — happy
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. file — a tool
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. content — the amount
  23. file — a line of people
  24. straw — a straw man

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