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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  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. board — to get on
  2. wake — a trail
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. staff — employees
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. tear — from crying
  7. lie — to recline
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — low music
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. squash — the sport
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. tear — to rip
  18. board — a committee
  19. squash — to crush
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bass — the fish
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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