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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bark — to shout
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. rock — music
  5. bank — for money
  6. cap — of ice
  7. rash — a series
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bank — for money
  13. cap — a hat
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. cap — a lid
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. cell — a phone
  24. rash — hasty

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