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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. shower — rain
  5. last — to go on
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. last — finally
  13. pop — soda
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. last — final
  16. wax — to grow
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. shower — to wash
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pop — music
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pop — to visit
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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