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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 124 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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. court — for sport
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. cell — a phone
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. key — for a lock
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a hole
  14. stand — to bear
  15. key — the most important part
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. court — of law
  20. kick — in football
  21. key — in music
  22. cell — in biology
  23. court — of a king
  24. patient — a sick person

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