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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. board — to get on
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. track — to keep track
  12. season — of the year
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — to play on
  15. snap — to click
  16. swing — in golf
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. track — a song
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. board — a committee
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. season — in sport

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