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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. last — finally
  5. roll — a list
  6. roll — a cake
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bat — the animal
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. last — to go on
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. last — final
  24. straw — a straw man

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