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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bank — for money
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. pit — a hole
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. net — in sport
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. pit — in a race
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bank — of a river
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bank — for money
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. net — after costs
  23. cold — not warm
  24. net — for catching

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