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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rock — music
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. pit — a hole
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. rock — a stone
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. last — final
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bark — to shout

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