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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. scale — size or range
  5. vault — a safe
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. content — the amount
  8. ground — a position
  9. content — happy
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. toast — bread
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. scale — in music
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. ground — crushed
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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