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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. present — a gift
  3. court — of law
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. court — for sport
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. key — the most important part
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. key — for a lock
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. key — in music
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. court — of a king

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