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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. chair — a leader
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bass — low music
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. kick — in football
  8. bass — the fish
  9. can — to be able to
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. can — a tin
  13. vault — a safe
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. can — a tin
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. kid — child

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