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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. bark — to shout
  3. mate — to breed
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. content — the amount
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. file — a tool
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. mate — a friend
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. mate — a partner
  18. content — happy
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. dip — to sink
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a line of people

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