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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. net — in sport
  6. kid — to tease
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. content — happy
  9. net — after costs
  10. cue — a signal
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. spell — letters
  13. cue — for pool
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cue — a hint
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. spell — a short time
  19. bound — tied together
  20. net — for catching
  21. content — the amount
  22. kid — child
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — obliged

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