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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. plane — a tool
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. chip — to eat
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cold — not warm
  10. content — the amount
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. tube — a container
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. tube — the underground
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. chip — for betting
  24. cold — an illness

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