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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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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: ball · mark · hide · dip · content · game · tear · current

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. ball — a great time
  4. mark — a grade
  5. current — of water
  6. tear — to rip
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. content — the amount
  11. game — a match
  12. current — electric
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — happening now
  15. mark — a trace
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. tear — from crying
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to sink
  22. ball — a dance
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. game — wild animals

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