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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 116 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: cue · content · lean · season · bear · straw · fall · snap

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bear — the animal
  3. fall — to drop
  4. season — of the year
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. fall — to drop
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. cue — for pool
  10. content — the amount
  11. lean — thin
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. cue — a hint
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. season — in sport
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. snap — to click
  21. cue — a signal
  22. fall — the season
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. lean — to bend

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