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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. fall — to drop
  3. club — for dancing
  4. track — to keep track
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. fine — all right
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bear — the animal
  13. fine — high quality
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. track — a song
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. club — for golf
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. track — a path
  23. club — a group
  24. fall — the season

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