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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rock — music
  9. dip — to sink
  10. drill — the tool
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. swing — music
  14. content — happy
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. kid — to tease
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. kid — child
  21. drill — army training
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. content — the amount
  24. drill — a practice

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