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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. content — the amount
  3. key — in music
  4. march — music
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. march — the month
  8. date — the fruit
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. bear — the animal
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. key — for a lock
  19. key — the most important part
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. content — happy
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bear — the animal
  24. march — the month

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