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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. game — a match
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. content — the amount
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. pit — in a race
  14. toast — bread
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. game — wild animals
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. pit — a hole

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