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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 124 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. season — in sport
  8. wind — moving air
  9. shower — to wash
  10. current — of water
  11. roll — a cake
  12. roll — a list
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. ball — a dance
  15. march — the month
  16. season — of the year
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. shower — rain
  19. wind — moving air
  20. current — electric
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. current — happening now

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