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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. chair — a leader
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. shower — to wash
  7. season — of the year
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. tear — to rip
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. land — a country
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. land — to come down
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. shower — rain
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bear — the animal
  21. wax — to grow
  22. bear — the animal
  23. land — ground
  24. chair — a professorship

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