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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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468
Word bank
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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. current — of water
  5. current — happening now
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. swing — music
  9. kid — child
  10. current — electric
  11. perch — the fish
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. row — a line
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bear — the animal
  18. pit — in a race
  19. bear — the animal
  20. row — to paddle
  21. kid — to tease
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. perch — for a bird

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