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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. spell — a short time
  10. lie — to recline
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a document
  13. spell — letters
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spell — magic
  18. game — wild animals
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. file — a line of people
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. kick — in football
  24. hide — animal skin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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