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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. wound — an injury
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. staff — employees
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. field — a subject
  12. chip — to eat
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. content — the amount
  15. staff — a stick
  16. field — for sport
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. field — farmland
  22. snap — to click
  23. wound — an injury
  24. staff — employees

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