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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chest — a box
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. kid — to tease
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. wind — moving air
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wind — moving air
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. cold — not warm
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — happy
  24. lie — an untruth

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