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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. land — to come down
  5. kick — in football
  6. squash — to crush
  7. tear — to rip
  8. rest — what's left
  9. chest — a box
  10. rest — what's left
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. rest — a break
  13. land — a country
  14. tear — from crying
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. land — ground
  19. squash — the sport
  20. tear — from crying
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — a stone

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