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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mark — a grade
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. mug — a face
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bat — the animal
  12. mug — a cup
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — rain
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. chest — a box
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spring — a coil
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. chest — of your body
  24. mark — a trace

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