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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. spring — the season
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. lean — to bend
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. spring — a coil
  8. last — finally
  9. spring — of water
  10. object — to protest
  11. lean — thin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. object — an aim
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. present — the time now
  19. object — a thing
  20. content — the amount
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. content — happy
  24. hide — animal skin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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