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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bulb — for light
  8. deal — to handle
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. swing — to play on
  12. row — to paddle
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. sharp — clever
  15. kid — child
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. bulb — for light
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. content — happy
  21. content — the amount
  22. swing — music
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. hide — to keep secret

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