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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bear — the animal
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. spring — the season
  8. toast — bread
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pop — to visit
  12. content — happy
  13. tube — the underground
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. bark — to shout
  18. pop — music
  19. spring — of water
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. content — the amount
  23. pop — soda
  24. tube — a container

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