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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — not warm
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — a committee
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. stem — to come from
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. land — ground
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. land — to come down
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. land — a country
  21. kick — in football
  22. board — to get on
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. hide — to keep secret

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