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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. face — to confront
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — of ice
  11. staff — a stick
  12. row — a line
  13. cap — a hat
  14. staff — employees
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. row — to paddle
  20. wound — an injury
  21. staff — employees
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. perch — the fish
  24. wound — an injury

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