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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cap — of ice
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wound — an injury
  8. last — to go on
  9. bank — of a river
  10. cap — a lid
  11. wound — an injury
  12. last — finally
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bank — for money
  17. cap — a hat
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. sharp — clever
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bank — for money
  23. last — final
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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