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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 120 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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. track — a song
  5. capital — money
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. row — a line
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — army training
  13. capital — a city
  14. present — there
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. drill — the tool
  19. present — a gift
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. track — a path
  22. track — to keep track
  23. present — the time now
  24. row — to paddle

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