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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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Word bank
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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 jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chest — of your body
  4. land — to come down
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. pass — a permit
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. kid — to tease
  11. cap — a lid
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. cap — a hat
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. swing — to play on
  18. cap — of ice
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. stand — to bear
  22. swing — in golf
  23. kid — child
  24. pass — to spend time

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