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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — the season
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. charge — in control
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mate — a friend
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. kick — in football
  12. row — to paddle
  13. charge — electricity
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — a line
  18. mate — a partner
  19. stem — to come from
  20. spring — of water
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. mate — to breed
  23. charge — a price
  24. straw — a straw man

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