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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. net — in sport
  4. track — a song
  5. ground — crushed
  6. content — the amount
  7. net — for catching
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. ground — the earth
  11. net — after costs
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. track — a path
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. track — to keep track
  17. ground — a position
  18. wave — of the sea

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