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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 116 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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bat — the animal
  10. mark — a trace
  11. season — of the year
  12. season — in sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. present — there
  16. cell — a phone
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mark — a grade
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. present — a gift
  22. saw — the tool
  23. present — the time now
  24. bat — in an idiom

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