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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. face — part of the head
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. prune — to trim
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. face — to confront
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. face — to point toward
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. pitch — completely
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. stand — to bear
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — help
  21. prune — to trim
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. cold — the Cold War

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