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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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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. plane — a tool
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. season — in sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bark — to shout
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stand — to bear
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. season — of the year
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. plane — in geometry

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