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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. track — a song
  5. current — electric
  6. tear — from crying
  7. current — happening now
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — happy
  10. bound — tied together
  11. track — to keep track
  12. bound — certain
  13. current — of water
  14. tear — from crying
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. track — a path
  17. bound — obliged
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. tear — to rip
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. jam — in traffic

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