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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. present — a gift
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bank — for money
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bank — for money
  7. bank — of a river
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cold — not warm
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. drill — the tool
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. present — the time now
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. drill — a practice
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. ground — a position
  21. present — there
  22. cold — an illness
  23. drill — army training
  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