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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. drill — the tool
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wound — an injury
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. drill — a practice
  14. wound — an injury
  15. spring — the season
  16. sharp — clever
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. spring — of water
  20. dip — to sink
  21. drill — army training
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. sharp — exactly

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