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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  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. staff — employees
  3. staff — a stick
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — the season
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. content — the amount
  9. bulb — for light
  10. spell — a short time
  11. craft — boats
  12. spell — letters
  13. drill — a practice
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. spring — of water
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. craft — a skill
  19. drill — army training
  20. bulb — for light
  21. drill — the tool
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. spell — magic
  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