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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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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. ground — the earth
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. cold — an illness
  7. deal — to handle
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. chest — of your body
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. row — to paddle
  12. chest — a box
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. cold — not warm
  22. perch — the fish
  23. row — a line
  24. deal — an agreement

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