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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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. bat — the animal
  4. current — electric
  5. land — a country
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. land — ground
  10. current — of water
  11. row — to paddle
  12. staff — employees
  13. rest — what's left
  14. land — to come down
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. staff — employees
  17. current — happening now
  18. deal — to handle
  19. row — a line
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — a break
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. staff — a stick

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