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

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. kick — in football
  3. branch — a division
  4. pit — in a race
  5. fall — to drop
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. roll — a list
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. roll — a cake
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fall — to drop
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. fall — the season
  21. pit — a hole
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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