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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. kid — child
  4. fall — to drop
  5. present — a gift
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bank — for money
  8. fork — in a road
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. bank — for money
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. fall — the season
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bank — of a river
  21. present — the time now
  22. kid — to tease
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. present — there

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