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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. chest — of your body
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. firm — steady
  7. firm — decided
  8. face — to confront
  9. chest — a box
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chest — of your body
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. face — to point toward
  16. cell — in biology
  17. firm — a company
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. cell — a phone
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — hurry
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. face — part of the head

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