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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hand — help
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bound — tied together
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. bound — certain
  8. chip — to eat
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. march — the month
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. sharp — clever
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. march — music
  17. chip — for betting
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cell — in biology
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. march — the month
  22. bound — obliged
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hide — to keep secret

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