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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. content — the amount
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. file — a document
  11. swing — to play on
  12. board — a committee
  13. swing — music
  14. key — in music
  15. key — for a lock
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. key — the most important part
  18. board — to get on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a tool
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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