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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. fall — to drop
  5. club — for dancing
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. fall — to drop
  8. field — for sport
  9. fall — the season
  10. bore — to tire
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. can — a tin
  14. field — farmland
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. can — to be able to
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. club — for golf
  20. can — a tin
  21. field — a subject
  22. bore — to drill
  23. club — a group
  24. hand — part of the body

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