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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bat — the animal
  4. stem — to come from
  5. suit — in cards
  6. bass — the fish
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. suit — clothes
  15. suit — to fit
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bass — low music
  18. chest — a box
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. rash — a series
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. chest — of your body
  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