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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. field — farmland
  3. row — to paddle
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — to tease
  7. shower — to wash
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. row — a line
  11. shower — rain
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. kid — child
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. lean — to bend
  16. field — a subject
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. field — for sport
  24. leaves — to go away

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