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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 120 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. ground — a position
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bark — to shout
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. bass — low music
  9. tear — to rip
  10. ground — the earth
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. press — newspapers
  15. ground — crushed
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. press — to push
  22. bass — the fish
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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