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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. band — a music group
  4. face — to point toward
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. face — to confront
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — in a race
  10. shower — to wash
  11. cold — an illness
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. press — to push
  15. band — a ring
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. face — part of the head
  18. shower — rain
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. press — a publisher
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. press — newspapers

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