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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. bark — to shout
  9. wound — an injury
  10. rash — a series
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. chip — to eat
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. shower — rain
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rock — music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. rock — a stone
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. chip — for betting

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