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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. prune — to trim
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. scale — in music
  10. cell — in biology
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. prune — to trim
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. rush — hurry
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. clip — to cut
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. deal — to handle

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