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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. content — happy
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cold — not warm
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. bass — the fish
  8. pop — music
  9. bass — low music
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pop — soda
  14. pop — to visit
  15. content — the amount
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. vault — a safe

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