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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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. lie — to recline
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. staff — employees
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. rash — a series
  7. bass — the fish
  8. content — happy
  9. dip — to sink
  10. rash — hasty
  11. tube — the underground
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bass — low music
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. tube — a container
  18. staff — a stick
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. content — the amount
  24. dip — to dunk

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