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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. land — to come down
  3. wind — moving air
  4. root — of a word
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. roll — a cake
  8. lie — to recline
  9. land — ground
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. root — of a plant
  13. cold — not warm
  14. land — a country
  15. cold — an illness
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wind — moving air
  18. root — the cause
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. perch — the fish
  23. roll — a list
  24. hide — to keep secret

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