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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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468
Word bank
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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  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. mine — for digging
  3. cell — in biology
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. kid — child
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. cell — a phone
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. fall — to drop
  12. can — a tin
  13. pitch — completely
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. fall — the season
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. kid — to tease
  23. calf — a young animal
  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