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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. season — of the year
  5. shower — rain
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cold — an illness
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. wind — moving air
  11. suit — clothes
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. suit — to fit
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wind — moving air
  17. season — in sport
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. shower — to wash
  21. suit — in cards
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. cold — not warm
  24. game — a match

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