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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: fall · fork · bear · land · lash · straw · content · degree

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. fall — to drop
  4. content — the amount
  5. degree — from a university
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bear — the animal
  10. content — happy
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bear — the animal
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fall — the season
  19. degree — an amount
  20. land — a country
  21. land — ground
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fork — in a road

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