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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hand — help
  3. court — for sport
  4. hand — in cards
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. tear — from crying
  9. court — of law
  10. spell — magic
  11. game — wild animals
  12. spell — letters
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. tear — to rip
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. season — of the year
  18. court — of a king
  19. season — in sport
  20. tear — from crying
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. game — a match
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hide — animal skin

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