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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. lie — to recline
  9. craft — boats
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. kid — to tease
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stock — shares
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. stock — goods
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. craft — a skill
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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