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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 124 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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. firm — a company
  3. clip — a video
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. spell — letters
  10. firm — steady
  11. fine — all right
  12. firm — decided
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. clip — to cut
  15. spell — a short time
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. cold — not warm
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. spell — magic
  22. cold — an illness
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. fine — high quality

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