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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. content — happy
  3. bank — for money
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. content — the amount
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — of a river
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. drill — army training
  15. bark — to shout
  16. drill — the tool
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. snap — to snap out of it

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