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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. row — a line
  4. fall — to drop
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. spring — of water
  9. stand — to bear
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. rock — music
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. rock — a stone
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. spring — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — the season

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