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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. game — a match
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. game — wild animals
  7. pound — a weight
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. present — there
  18. bark — to shout
  19. face — to confront
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — part of the head
  24. 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