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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. court — of a king
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bear — the animal
  7. court — for sport
  8. stock — goods
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. kid — child
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. kid — to tease
  14. stock — shares
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — for light
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bear — the animal
  24. court — of law

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