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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. shower — rain
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wound — an injury
  8. land — a country
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. row — to paddle
  13. kid — child
  14. land — to come down
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. kid — to tease
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. row — a line
  24. land — ground

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