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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. game — a match
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. cold — not warm
  6. suit — to fit
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. last — finally
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. game — wild animals
  12. content — happy
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. last — final
  15. last — to go on
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. suit — clothes
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. content — the amount
  22. cold — an illness
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. suit — in cards

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