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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. field — for sport
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. field — a subject
  8. foot — a measure
  9. can — a tin
  10. kid — child
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. can — to be able to
  14. field — farmland
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. kid — to tease
  18. hide — to keep secret

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