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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 116 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. lie — to recline
  4. squash — to crush
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. ground — the earth
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rash — a series
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. ground — crushed
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. craft — a skill
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. ground — a position
  24. squash — the 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