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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  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. bound — tied together
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — for catching
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bound — obliged
  9. file — a tool
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. file — a document
  14. bound — certain
  15. mine — for digging
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. net — in sport
  18. kid — child
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. stem — to come from
  22. kid — to tease
  23. file — a line of people
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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