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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. shower — to wash
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — in golf
  10. fall — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. swing — to play on
  14. shower — rain
  15. present — there
  16. fall — to drop
  17. present — the time now
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. cold — not warm
  20. prune — to trim
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. prune — to trim
  24. present — a gift

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