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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. ball — a great time
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. race — a contest
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — child
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. race — the arms race
  15. fall — to drop
  16. lie — to recline
  17. sharp — clever
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. fall — the season
  22. race — humankind
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. fall — to drop

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