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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. board — to get on
  3. present — a gift
  4. press — to push
  5. perch — the fish
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. board — a committee
  12. present — the time now
  13. file — a document
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. present — there
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. press — newspapers
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. press — a publisher
  22. file — a line of people
  23. pitch — completely
  24. file — a tool

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