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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. pop — music
  7. field — a subject
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pop — to visit
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. dip — to sink
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. shower — to wash
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — for sport
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. shower — rain
  20. pop — soda
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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