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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. object — an aim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. chip — for betting
  10. object — a thing
  11. tube — the underground
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. object — to protest
  14. march — the month
  15. tube — a container
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. march — music
  18. chip — to eat
  19. prune — to trim
  20. march — the month
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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