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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. file — a line of people
  3. last — to go on
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. file — a tool
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. file — a document
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. last — final
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. last — finally
  18. chair — a leader
  19. hand — in cards
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. toast — bread
  24. hand — help

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