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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 116 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  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. clip — for paper
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. kid — to tease
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. board — to get on
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. pound — a weight
  14. kid — child
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. board — a committee
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. clip — a video
  23. wake — a trail
  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