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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 124 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  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. can — a tin
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bound — obliged
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — the fish
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. kid — to tease
  11. stand — to bear
  12. kid — child
  13. bound — tied together
  14. can — to be able to
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. bound — certain
  20. can — a tin
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. cold — the Cold War
  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