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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. staff — employees
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. staff — a stick
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. field — farmland
  9. band — a music group
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. row — a line
  12. band — a ring
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. staff — employees
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. row — to paddle
  17. field — for sport
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. field — a subject
  22. kid — to tease
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. wave — of the sea

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