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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. mine — for digging
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. row — to paddle
  10. pit — in a race
  11. clip — a video
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. row — a line
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. clip — to cut
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pit — a hole
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. lean — to bend
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. lean — thin
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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