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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. march — the month
  4. plane — a tool
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. march — music
  7. rash — a series
  8. march — the month
  9. ground — crushed
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fall — the season
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — a position
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. kick — in football
  24. rash — hasty

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