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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. track — a path
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. track — to keep track
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tube — the underground
  12. track — a song
  13. swing — music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. foot — a measure
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tube — a container
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bowl — to roll

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