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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. pit — a hole
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. degree — temperature
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. file — a document
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pit — in a race
  14. degree — an amount
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. file — a tool
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. degree — from a university
  21. file — a line of people
  22. foot — a measure
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. hide — to keep secret

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