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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. last — finally
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. last — final
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. last — to go on
  24. trunk — of a tree

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