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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. current — happening now
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. band — a ring
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. wind — moving air
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. current — of water
  12. band — a music group
  13. chip — for betting
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. tube — the underground
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. tube — a container
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. current — electric
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. chip — to eat

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