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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  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. bear — to put up with
  2. shower — rain
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pop — to visit
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pop — music
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. pop — soda
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. clip — for paper
  19. cell — in biology
  20. shower — to wash
  21. clip — a video
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cell — a phone
  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