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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. land — ground
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bear — the animal
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bore — to tire
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — not warm
  15. land — a country
  16. cue — a hint
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. cue — for pool
  19. land — to come down
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. cue — a signal

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