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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: staff · hide · bank · field · stick · content · wave · rock

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — for sport
  4. staff — a stick
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. staff — employees
  7. content — happy
  8. content — the amount
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bank — of a river
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. bank — for money
  13. field — a subject
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. rock — a stone
  16. staff — employees
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. rock — music
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. bank — for money
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. field — farmland
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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