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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. field — farmland
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bear — the animal
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. straw — a straw man

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