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

Word bank: safe · dip · content · bowl · wind · stand · cold · spring

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. spring — of water
  3. cold — an illness
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. dip — to sink
  6. spring — the season
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. content — happy
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. stand — to bear
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. cold — not warm
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. wind — moving air
  19. content — the amount
  20. wind — moving air
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. spring — a coil
  24. stand — for spectators

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