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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. rush — hurry
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — employees
  14. lie — to recline
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. bark — to shout
  17. staff — a stick
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. content — the amount
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. cell — a phone
  24. fork — in a road

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