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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — thin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. clip — a video
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. staff — employees
  18. lean — to rest against

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