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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bear — the animal
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. stand — to bear
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. track — a song
  15. track — a path
  16. content — happy
  17. track — to keep track
  18. land — ground
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. land — to come down
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. chest — of your body
  23. land — a country
  24. bear — the animal

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