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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. branch — a division
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. pit — a hole
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. stand — to bear
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. capital — a city
  10. chip — to eat
  11. clip — for paper
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. clip — a video
  14. land — a country
  15. capital — money
  16. land — ground
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. land — to come down
  21. clip — to cut
  22. chip — for betting
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pit — in a race

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