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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. content — happy
  3. hand — help
  4. content — the amount
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitch — completely
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — to tire
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pit — in a race
  20. rash — a series
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. rash — hasty

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