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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 116 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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. last — finally
  6. race — humankind
  7. bass — the fish
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. last — final
  13. tear — from crying
  14. kid — child
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bass — low music
  19. plane — a tool
  20. last — to go on
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. cabinet — ministers

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