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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: rule · content · row · kid · vault · lean · date · hide

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. date — the fruit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. lean — to bend
  8. kid — child
  9. row — a line
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. kid — to tease
  13. content — happy
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. row — to paddle
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. vault — a safe
  19. rule — government
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. content — the amount
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. lean — thin

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