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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tube — a container
  4. squash — the sport
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. degree — from a university
  9. squash — to crush
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. content — happy
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. tube — the underground
  17. hand — help
  18. pound — a weight
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. degree — an amount
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. content — the amount

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