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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. last — to go on
  3. wound — an injury
  4. last — final
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. last — finally
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — to bear
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. wound — an injury
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. cold — an illness

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