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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. mug — a cup
  3. field — farmland
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bore — to tire
  6. field — a subject
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. cold — not warm
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mug — a face
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bore — to drill
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. field — for sport
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. mug — to rob
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — hurry
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bound — certain
  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