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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bear — the animal
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. mine — for digging
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — magic
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. row — a line
  16. bear — the animal
  17. clip — for paper
  18. spell — a short time
  19. clip — a video
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. leaves — lets stay

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