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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  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 — animal skin
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. face — part of the head
  5. pop — to visit
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. tear — to rip
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pop — music
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pop — soda
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. court — for sport
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. court — of law
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. mine — for digging
  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