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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. drill — a practice
  3. bass — low music
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. stem — to come from
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. last — to go on
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. hand — help
  13. bass — the fish
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. capital — money
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. drill — army training
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. capital — a city
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. leaves — to go away

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