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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. field — a subject
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. field — for sport
  7. present — there
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. can — a tin
  10. present — the time now
  11. field — farmland
  12. wake — a trail
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. can — to be able to
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. branch — a division
  17. kid — child
  18. can — a tin
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. present — a gift
  23. kid — to tease
  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