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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 116 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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. band — a music group
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bear — the animal
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. ball — a dance
  8. root — the cause
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. band — a ring
  11. drill — the tool
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. drill — a practice
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. root — of a word
  17. ball — a great time
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. drill — army training
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. root — of a plant

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