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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 120 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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. content — happy
  4. season — of the year
  5. sharp — clever
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. hand — help
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. deal — to handle
  10. content — the amount
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. plane — a tool
  14. bark — to shout
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. season — in sport
  20. hand — in cards
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. bark — of a tree

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