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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. press — newspapers
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. rock — a stone
  11. press — to push
  12. field — farmland
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. press — a publisher
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — for betting
  19. chest — a box
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. rock — music
  23. chest — of your body
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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