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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. mine — for digging
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. field — for sport
  7. key — the most important part
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. face — part of the head
  13. lean — thin
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. kid — to tease
  16. face — to point toward
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. key — for a lock
  19. kid — child
  20. face — to confront
  21. key — in music
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. lean — to bend

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