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

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. squash — to crush
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. spring — a coil
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. content — the amount
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. press — to push
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. spring — of water
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. content — happy
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. press — newspapers
  17. spring — the season
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. press — a publisher
  20. file — a tool
  21. season — of the year
  22. season — in sport
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. file — a line of people

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