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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. file — a tool
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. snap — to click
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. dip — to sink
  7. hand — in cards
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. file — a document
  10. court — of law
  11. mate — to breed
  12. court — for sport
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. mate — a friend
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. rule — government
  17. court — of a king
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. file — a line of people
  20. hand — help
  21. rule — a law
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mate — a partner

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