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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. firm — decided
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pass — a permit
  13. field — farmland
  14. firm — steady
  15. firm — a company
  16. net — for catching
  17. snap — to click
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. net — in sport
  22. wound — an injury
  23. net — after costs
  24. pass — to succeed

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