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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. land — ground
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. stock — goods
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. ground — the earth
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — music
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. ground — a position
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — shares
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. kick — in football
  21. rock — a stone
  22. ground — crushed
  23. branch — a division
  24. hide — to keep secret

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