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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. board — a committee
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. band — a ring
  12. kid — child
  13. perch — the fish
  14. kid — to tease
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. board — to get on
  17. cap — a lid
  18. file — a line of people
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. cap — a hat
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. drill — a practice
  24. cap — of ice

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