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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — from crying
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. rock — a stone
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cold — an illness
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. kick — in football
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. tear — to rip
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wake — a trail
  24. kick — with a leg

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