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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. kid — child
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. drill — a practice
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. drill — army training
  8. rock — music
  9. kid — to tease
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. ground — the earth
  18. rock — a stone
  19. drill — the tool
  20. ground — a position
  21. mark — a grade
  22. ground — crushed
  23. mark — a trace
  24. leaves — to go away

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