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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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Word bank
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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. chest — a box
  5. field — for sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chest — of your body
  9. field — farmland
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. content — happy
  13. field — a subject
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. kick — in football
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. content — the amount
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. safe — a strongbox

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