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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. ground — the earth
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. kid — to tease
  12. ground — crushed
  13. kid — child
  14. ground — a position
  15. clip — a video
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. clip — to cut
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. pit — a hole
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. mine — for digging
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. pit — in a race

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