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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hide · content · pitcher · chest · sharp · trunk · spell · press

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. chest — of your body
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. spell — magic
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. content — the amount
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. content — happy
  12. sharp — clever
  13. chest — of your body
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. spell — a short time
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. press — to push
  24. chest — a box

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